Professor Frederike Van Wijck
Professor, Co-Director Research Centre for Health (ReaCH)
Frederike van Wijck is Professor of Neurological Rehabilitation and Co-Director of the Research Centre for Health (ReaCH) at the School for Health and Life Sciences at GCU.
Her main research interests are perceptuo-motor control and learning in the context of enhancing functional recovery in people with long-term neurological conditions – especially stroke.
Research interests
Her current programme of research, which includes systematic reviews, validation studies, modelling and feasibility studies, as well as definitive randomised controlled clinical trials, focuses on two themes:
- Arm function recovery - this comprises studies on the mechanisms, effects and experiences of a range of interventions, including bilateral arm training, task oriented training in acute and community-based settings, music therapy, robotics and augmented feedback.
- Physical activity - this comprises studies measuring physical activity and sedentary behaviour after stroke, the design and evaluation of novel interventions to enhance physical activity in people unable to walk after stroke, as well as goal setting in the context of fitness training after stroke. The work on physical fitness training, developed with Professor Gillian Mead at the University of Edinburgh, includes the design and accreditation of the first UK Exercise and Fitness Training after Stroke specialist instructor course (now licensed to Later Life Training) and the development of best practice guidelines for community-based exercise and fitness training after stroke.
Professional membership
Frederike is a member of the Cochrane Stroke Editorial Group, a council member of the Society for Research in Rehabilitation and the research lead for the Scottish Allied Health Professions Forum. She is the Co-Lead of the Stroke and Neurological Rehabilitation Research Group (SYNERGY) and Co-Director of the Research Centre for Health (ReaCH).