With an aging population, the demand for rehabilitation services for the elderly is experiencing explosive growth. This presents an unprecedented challenge for many social welfare organizations: on the one hand, the number of elderly people waiting in line for services is increasing, while on the other hand, they are facing the double blow of insufficient budgets.
To address the current challenges, North District Hospital in Hong Kong introduced FlexMSK in early 2026 and launched a smart healthcare innovation program to showcase a new standard for rehabilitation medicine to the industry.
Source：《北區醫院慈善信託基金通訊》第十期
Industry pioneer: North District Hospital’s “Artificial Intelligence Inpatient Rehabilitation Program”
A multidisciplinary team comprised of orthopaedic, physical therapy, and occupational therapy specialists at the North District Hospital has introduced advanced FlexMSK AI-powered smart rehabilitation technology to implement an “AI-powered inpatient rehabilitation programme.” This programme was first piloted in three orthopaedic wards in late February 2026, and within just a few months, it has successfully benefited over 22 postoperative patients, achieving excellent clinical results.
For patients undergoing total knee replacement surgery, the knee flexion-extension angle after surgery is a core indicator for assessing rehabilitation progress. In the traditional model, this requires therapists to spend a significant amount of time at the bedside manually measuring and providing one-on-one guidance, and to record the progress themselves.
After the North District Hospital introduced the FlexMSK AI rehabilitation system, it can accurately capture the patient’s joint points through an ordinary lens and display screen, as well as RaphAI’s patented AI clinical-grade skeleton sensor , and calculate the flexion-extension angles in real time, perfectly replacing manual measurement.
FlexMSK aligns closely with clinical needs and is easy to use, helping to enhance the flexibility of patient rehabilitation training.
The successful experience of the North District Hospital offers significant insights for senior day care centers and nursing homes across various social welfare organizations. Through the FlexMSK AI system , these institutions can perfectly address the growing demand for rehabilitation services for the elderly without requiring additional human resources .
I. Expedite the processing of backlogged cases
In traditional rehabilitation services, therapists need to handle both new cases and follow-up cases, and can only provide one-on-one guidance to patients on exercise each time. As a result, the number of patients waiting in line continues to accumulate, creating a bottleneck effect and missing the golden treatment opportunity.
- FlexMSK Accelerated Solution : After completing a diagnosis, therapists can directly select specialized rehabilitation exercises for different joints (such as shoulder, elbow, knee, hip, ankle, spine, etc.) within the FlexMSK system. FlexMSK then guides the patient through the prescribed exercises, allowing the therapist to focus on diagnosing the next new patient. Therefore, therapists can concentrate on diagnosing new cases, with FlexMSK handling follow-up , which improves overall efficiency, shortens patient waiting times, and implements the concept of “early training, early rehabilitation.”
II. Increase continuous training
In the past, after receiving the first treatment, patients were often unable to perform “additional exercises” due to limited manpower and could only rely on themselves to practice at home. However, due to the lack of real-time guidance, there was a chance that incorrect movements would slow down the recovery process or even cause secondary injuries.
- FlexMSK’s solution : FlexMSK acts like an “AI therapist,” recognizing movements, tracking bones, and providing real-time voice correction and visual feedback (such as seeing the angle bar on the screen indicating that the target has been achieved, or hearing a voice of praise), helping patients to continue training with correct movements.
After undergoing a knee replacement surgery at the North District Hospital, Mr. Lamn follows the AI prompts of FlexMSK to perform prescribed exercises daily. He shared:
“At first, I didn’t quite grasp the leg flexion and extension angle, but after following the system a few times, I gradually learned how to do it more accurately.”
This intuitive visual correction and real-time voice prompts allow individuals to gradually master the correct movements and accelerate their recovery, even without medical guidance.
III. Using data to accelerate the rehabilitation process
In the past, when elderly people practiced at home, there was a lack of real data, making it difficult for therapists to make objective judgments. They had to rely on face-to-face consultations to adjust prescriptions, and the recovery process often took longer than expected.
- FlexMSK automatically records data : The system automatically records exercise data (such as maximum range of motion, progress, accuracy, etc.) during patient practice and sends it to the therapist’s platform. Even without meeting the patient, therapists can monitor the patient’s rehabilitation progress and adjust prescribed exercises accordingly. In addition, FlexMSK has built-in communication functions, allowing therapists to provide feedback and encouragement at any time, offering more support to patients.
FlexMSK can detect the range of motion of a patient’s upper limbs and provide real-time voice prompts, enabling patients to adjust their movements instantly during training in simulated real-life scenarios; this helps them regain the ability to manage daily activities and enhances rehabilitation outcomes.
Ms Chi-yan Lam – Senior Occupational Therapist, North District Hospital
Lightweight AI meets the huge needs of the community
Introducing new technologies does not necessarily mean undertaking extensive renovations or purchasing expensive equipment. On the contrary, FlexMSK’s core concept is to achieve medical-grade results with minimal equipment and flexibly support various hardware options. For example, hospitals can use mobile all-in-one carts (such as the easy-to-use configuration used in the wards of the North District Hospital), or patients can directly use their ordinary smartphones to conveniently perform prescription exercises at home, saving considerable hardware purchase and maintenance costs.
