www.swimmingpoolnews.co.uk
WaterWellness FEB 2012 SPN
73
Recently launched Bramshott Retirement Village in Liphook, Hampshire
One sector in the pool building market is growing in record numbers. The use of hydrotherapy in hospitals, sports injuries centres and private clinics means specialist pools continue to be in demand. This adds pressure on the pool trade to provide the right facilities for patients to get in the water and be able to use treatments to the full
By Alan Lewis
he healing power of water is now big business in both the UK and around the world. Hydrotherapy, or aqua-therapy as it is now being referred to, is a mainstream treatment for everything from rehabilitation after operations to speeding up recovery of sports injuries to improvement of muscle movements and treatment of specialist illnesses. Many hospitals use it on patients where movement is limited because of paralysis or pain or where muscles have been weakened through injury or illness. It is a therapy where patients are immersed in
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warm water in swimming pools which are far from normal and have very important modifications. The huge expansion in its success as a therapy has seen record numbers of therapy pools built in 2011 and now being commissioned for 2012 and 2013.
With it comes greater need to provide access to pools through lifts and hoists which are certain to become the focus of more legal requirements for pool owners.
Hydrotherapy pools are now mainstream business for pool builders as hospitals,
professional football clubs and increasingly specialist clinics all invest in pools to try and keep up with patient demand.
Their construction and the provision of specialist equipment are seen as crucial if the professional treatment is to maintain its standards of healing.
Such pools are special for a number of reasons. They must have hoists for lifting people in and out of the pool, as well as walking bars and specially designed handles for those who have difficulty or who find it painful to move around without assistance.
Also, it is essential for the water to be at body temperature. They need a slightly higher chemical dosing, due to the warmer temperatures and the nature of the use. There are three primary objectives to conducting physical therapy in warm water. It abolishes gravity, allowing the body to float and amplifying the power in the muscles. This allows greater movement of a limb or joint and finally resistance to movement in water is useful for gentle exercise.
A new hydrotherapy pool from Heritage Pools within a refurbished barn
Despite financial restrictions within the NHS, one 2011 Department of Health report urges more investment to provide hospital units with quality, well equipped hydrotherapy pools. In Wales, Gwent’s newest hospital outside Ystrad Mynach is a distinctive £172m project which opened in November last year. The hydrotherapy pool is one of the most advanced in the UK.
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