How do I get to the Bobath Centre?

THE BOBATH CENTRE
for Adults with Neurological Disability
Physiotherapy Services
If you would like to arrange an appointment at the
Bobath Centre, this booklet will help to guide you.
Do you have an acquired neurological condition caused, for
example, by a stroke or head injury, multiple sclerosis, spinal
cord injury (incomplete) or Parkinson's?
Or do you have a neuro-developmental condition such as
cerebral palsy?
If so, regardless of your age and the duration of your
disability, therapy at the Bobath Centre will be right for you.
The Bobath approach to the treatment of adults with
neurological disability has achieved international recognition
as one of the foremost approaches to the treatment and
management of people with neurological conditions.
The aim of Bobath therapy is to improve or restore your
function following neurological impairment. Treatment is
tailored to your individual needs and is based upon an
assessment of your abilities and analysis of your movement
disorder. This is achieved through the use of specialised
handling techniques that help to reduce spasticity and
facilitate more normal movement.
Therapy sessions at the Bobath Centre focus on giving you
the opportunity to experience more efficient and effective
movement and on finding ways to enable you to incorporate
these different movement strategies into your daily activities.
The Bobath Centre, Bradbury House, 250 East End Road, London N2 8AU
Phone: 020 8444 3355 Fax: 020 8444 3399 Web: www.bobath.org.uk
Contents
What is Bobath therapy? ............................................................ 3
What kinds of conditions are treated? ........................................ 3
Who will provide my treatment? ................................................. 3
What types of appointment are available? ................................. 4
How do I arrange an appointment? ............................................ 4
Is it possible to have NHS funding? ........................................... 4
Can I pay for treatment? ............................................................ 5
What can I expect from a 10-session block of therapy? ............. 6
What can I expect from a consultation? ..................................... 6
Will my local therapist be involved? ........................................... 6
How do I get to the Bobath Centre? ........................................... 6
Do you provide accommodation? ............................................... 6
What facilities do you provide? .................................................. 6
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What is Bobath therapy?
The Bobath approach to treatment can significantly assist people living with a
neurological condition to re-establish the physical skills needed for everyday life.
Therapy sessions at the Bobath Centre focus on giving you the opportunity to
experience more efficient and effective movement and on finding ways to enable you
to incorporate these different movement strategies into your daily activities.
We will help you to understand your condition and, together with your relatives, to be
an active participant in the problem-solving process.
Using specialised handling techniques, Bobath therapists can reduce muscle
stiffness and help to restore movement so that regular activities such as walking,
dressing, or eating can be carried out with greater independence.
The Bobath approach to the treatment of adults with neurological disability was
pioneered by Mrs Berta Bobath in the 1950s. It has achieved recognition as one of
the foremost approaches to the treatment and management of people with
neurological conditions.
The concept continues to be developed by Bobath therapists working in this
specialist field.
What kinds of conditions are treated?
We specialise in:
- treatment for people with acquired neurological conditions caused, for example, by
strokes or head injury, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injury (incomplete) and
Parkinson's;
- treatment of neuro-developmental conditions such as cerebral palsy.
Therapy at the Bobath Centre is appropriate for adults with acquired neurodisability,
regardless of age and duration of disability.
Who will provide my treatment?
You will be treated by a senior therapist who is a specialist in neurology.
The therapy team at the Bobath Centre includes therapists with experience of
treating adults with a variety of acquired neurological conditions and cerebral palsy
as a lifelong condition. As a minimum standard, our adult physiotherapists have
taken a recognised three-week adult Bobath course in neurology; our current
therapists are vastly more experienced.
The skill mix of therapists at the Bobath Centre provides the best possible
knowledge base for managing the whole spectrum of neurological conditions treated
at the Centre.
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What types of appointment are available?
Initially two types of appointment are available:
-
a 10-session block of assessment and treatment (one session of at least
45 minutes per day) often taken over a two-week period
-
a 1½ hour consultation and report with a senior therapist for advice on treatment.
After an initial consultation or block of therapy, a follow-up treatment block may be
offered, or regular treatment sessions may be offered to you if you live within easy
reach of the Bobath Centre. Daily therapy is available on a short-term basis if you live
further away.
How do I arrange an appointment?
You will need to arrange for us to receive a referral from a doctor. We accept doctors’
referrals for people who live in the UK and from all other countries.
A letter of referral giving full medical details and relevant history is essential,
including any current treatment you are undergoing. This should come from your
consultant, GP or local doctor and should be addressed to the Director of Therapy
Services at the Bobath Centre. Our postal address is given on the last page of this
booklet.
All correspondence and documents should be in English.
Is it possible to have NHS funding?
Treatment costs may be covered by the NHS if you are a permanent resident in the
UK.
The NHS has recently undergone extensive reorganisation. Clinical Commissioning
Groups (CCGs) replaced primary care trusts on 1st April 2013, and doctors are now
in the driving seat when it comes to commissioning services in the biggest shake up
of the NHS since its foundation in 1948.
What you can do to find out if NHS funding is possible
Each CCG operates slightly differently and there are 211 in total, so the first thing
you should do is to talk to your GP to find out what is happening about funding in
your area and whether it is possible to arrange an application for funding for
treatment at the Bobath Centre.
As doctors are now making funding requests we are finding that applications to the
NHS can take some time, typically three to four months and there is no guarantee of
funding being approved.
If NHS funding is agreed, once we have written notification from the CCG or your
doctor we will contact you to arrange an appointment.
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Can I pay for treatment?
Yes. We will ask you for a deposit equal to half the fee when your appointment is
booked, with the balance due on the first day of your treatment.
Payments may be made either by banker's order, cheque or debit/credit card. We
can only confirm your appointment after we have received your deposit payment.
If you have an undertaking from an insurance company or other source to fund you,
we expect you to meet the cost of treatment yourself and reclaim payment from the
relevant body. We will provide you with appropriate invoices/receipts to facilitate this.
If you are attending the Bobath Centre from overseas you will be paying for your own
treatment as NHS funding is not available for people not permanently resident in
England.
Treatment costs
Consultation with a senior therapist:
£447
10-session course of treatment (usually taken over 2-weeks):
Includes one treatment session a day, for ten sessions, plus
a report on the treatment given and recommendations for
future management, which will be supplied to you and
your referring doctor.
On going weekly treatment - per session:
£102
Charge for treatment in addition to the minimum - per session:
£102
Administration charge for all non-European Union patients
£350
£1,224
The fees above include any letters or reports and/or the Home Programme
Treatment Plan. If two therapists work with you an additional charge may be made.
The Tariff is subject to annual price review
Adult Centre Tariff 2013-14
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What can I expect from a 10-session block of therapy?
You will have a 10-session period of assessment and treatment in which the therapy
is provided by a Bobath physiotherapist. The therapy will be on an individual basis
with each treatment session lasting at least 45 minutes.
After your block of therapy, a report including a home programme will be sent to you,
your local therapist, GP, referring doctor and if your local NHS has funded the visit,
they will also receive a copy of the report.
What can I expect from a consultation?
In a consultation appointment which lasts 1½ to 2 hours we can address only one or
two issues, as we then take time to suggest appropriate activities
During the course of the consultation we may use equipment that enhances your
activity, but the focus of a consultation is not directly to address equipment needs.
A report including a short home programme will be sent to you, your local therapist,
GP and referring doctor. If your local NHS has funded the visit, they will also receive
a copy of the report.
Will my local therapist be involved?
We are keen to liaise with local therapists. Please let us know if you would like your
local therapist to be invited to attend.
How do I get to the Bobath Centre?
The Bobath Centre is in north London and by car is within easy reach of the M1 and
North Circular Road (A406). We have a large visitors’ car park. Travelling by public
transport, East Finchley underground station (Northern line) is seven minutes walk
and there are good local bus links.
Do you provide accommodation?
The Bobath Centre is an out-patient centre so we do not provide accommodation. If
you cannot travel daily to the Bobath Centre, you will need to arrange hotel or guest
house accommodation. We have a list of local hotels, apartments and B&Bs
available on request; you would need to check that any accommodation is suitable
for you.
What facilities do you provide?
The Bobath Centre building is on one level and accessible throughout. We have a
family kitchen with fridge-freezer and microwave and a washer-dryer in our laundry
room - facilities to make a stay away from home as easy as possible. As well as the
male and female toilets, we also have two disabled access toilets and a disabled
access shower.
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Notes
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The Bobath Centre
for Adults with Neurological Disability
Bradbury House
250 East End Road
East Finchley
London N2 8AU
Tel: 020 8444 3355
Fax: 020 8444 3399
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.bobath.org.uk
Registered charity number: 1039162
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