Rancho established the first robotic program for children with Cerebral Palsy on the West Coast. The hospital is also part of a national study on the impact of robotic therapy using a shoulder robot. Robotics is one of our newest areas of focus at Rancho and we are excited to help fund the Robotics Department with their research and therapy.  No other program exists nationwide with such leading-edge technology placing Rancho at the forefront of rehabilitation for ambulatory and non-ambulatory children.

We are working with children who have debilitating epilepsy and have funded research on Robotics Therapy for children with cerebral palsy. The objectives are to improve mobility, gain scientific knowledge in neuro-rehab, train therapists, and advance clinical practice through enhanced guidelines.

This type of robotic therapy, some of which includes Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) as an adjunct to motor therapy, is providing numerous applications and possibilities in the future that include epilepsy, cerebral palsy and additional developmental disorders such as autism. The fundamental message is diagnosis is not destiny.

We fund “Robocamp” for children who have undergone hemispherectomy surgery. This two-week camp provides intense robotics-assisted therapy to children after hemispherectomy surgery. Our Robocamp is a pioneering program which has never been done before in the United States. The children come back over the course of multiple years which allows their progress to be monitored between year two and year three.

Rehabilitation strategies have changed in the last decade with the recognition that the brain is plastic throughout life and brain stimulation can make a difference for children with physical and development disorders.