Creating therapy in a fun environment

Let us introduce you to Logan local, and serial innovator Dave Ingerson. Dave's most recent innovation journey started a few years ago after his daughter Tara was required to undergo a heavy regime of physical therapy from a series of leg operations. Although this is very common, the physical therapy did have some obvious inefficiencies and problems. First, the therapy required multiple people to assist Tara, making it very labour intensive. Second, it was expensive, and third, it was quite boring. Dave initially didn't see that as a business opportunity, rather a problem that needed to be solved, and as the saying goes "necessity is the mother of invention".

It didn't take long before Dave came up with the solution to this problem, which would make therapy enjoyable and engaging, reduce both the financial and physical resources required, and allow a degree of freedom for the person doing the therapy making it mobile. "I suppose I am one of those people who sees a problem and asks myself, why does that have to exist." The solution that Dave created was Therapytrike.

Therapytrike is a physiotherapy Trike specifically designed for individuals with leg impairment or brain injuries to experience the therapeutic benefits of bike riding. The Therapytrike strengthens and trains the muscles in the legs, core and back, while allowing individuals to do their therapy in a fun environment. TherapyTrike has been developed by a group of local specialists with the aim of bringing therapies to many more people than is currently available.

"Working out of Logan has been a huge advantage because not only do we have a really diverse group of people across it, but we've got a really diverse group of abilities, and that means that you can find small local companies that will work with you and allow you to produce your product to a far greater ability than you would be able to do yourself. Use the abilities that are out there, because they are fantastic resources."

Dave knew that his innovation was a real game changer when he was testing an early prototype with a local school and was surprised by the reaction that the Therapytrike evoked from the school physical therapist. "We had the physio therapist in tears by the fact that these kids were doing things that they had never been able to with therapies and having fun while doing it. Some of them had never been out of a wheelchair onto a bike." Now with his final patented product, Dave is making strong moves to release the TherapyTrike into the market and make a big splash in the world of physical therapy.

Dave finished by giving some powerful advice to anyone wanting to innovate in Logan, "Don't just do it yourself, look at what's out there and look at the abilities that are out there, the people around you use their abilities, and by doing that you're going to end up with something far more powerful and better."

"The greatest thing we can achieve by working together in Logan is that we can foster that innovation and growth, and it's not just about the innovation but it actually grows the community so the results are spectacular across the board."

Stay up to date with the latest news and events by subscribing to INNOV8 Logan fortnightly news, here: https://innov8logan.com.au/get-involved/