By now, most of us have heard about the Pokémon GO craze that has swept the nation, especially among cell-phone-toting youngsters, but it is also now catching on among elderly rehab patients, according to the Association of Mature American Citizens. The mobile phone game requires users to hunt so-called monsters in a virtual environment and the task requires concentration and long walks.
Jaclyn Batts, a registered occupational therapist at the DeBary Health and Rehabilitation Center in Florida, came up with the idea of Pokémon therapy. She calls it a great motivator and tool to facilitate occupational therapy.
Batts’ colleague Michele Turbin said “my first thought when I heard the idea was ‘What a great story!’ followed by ‘But, are the patients actually using it?’ The answer was a resounding ‘Yes!’ I saw happy people, who ordinarily would sometimes not want to go to therapy, learning a new skill and waiting their turn to play.
