Colchester
Colchester is the far end of the patch, about twenty-five miles up the A12 from South Woodham Ferrers. That does not make it a problem, but it does make it a planned visit rather than a same-afternoon one, so it is worth ringing a little earlier than you might for somewhere closer.
Everything happens in the house. There is no clinic to get to and no parking to find in town, which counts for more in Colchester than in most places. For somebody who has stopped feeling confident on their feet, getting to an appointment is often the hardest part of the appointment.
Coming out of Colchester Hospital
Most people in Colchester come home from Colchester Hospital on Turner Road, and a fair number arrive back weaker than they went in. Ten days in a bed costs an older adult somewhere around a kilo of leg muscle, which is enough to turn a manageable staircase into an impossible one without anything else having changed.
North Essex also sits with a different NHS trust from the middle and south of the county, so families who have dealt with Broomfield or Southend before often find the referral routes here are not the ones they were expecting. Reeflex is not a replacement for the community team. Where something is already in place, Reef fits around it. Where nothing has been arranged, you do not need a referral to ring.
Why the house matters
North Hill and East Hill are the obvious ones, but the whole town centre tilts, and so do plenty of the houses on it. A Georgian townhouse in the Dutch Quarter has a staircase that is steep, narrow and turns twice. A Victorian terrace in New Town has a straight run and a decent handrail. A bungalow in Prettygate has no stairs at all and a step down to the garden that nobody has thought about. A newer house at Stanway or on the old Garrison has everything on the level and a longer walk to the car than it looks.
None of that shows up in a clinic. A standard set of practice steps will tell you whether somebody can climb steps. It tells you almost nothing about whether they can get to their own bedroom at eleven at night. Assessing in the house means working on the real obstacle, and setting a goal worth having, whether that is the stairs, the garden or the walk to the bus stop.
What happens
Before anyone books anything, Reef will talk it through with you or a family member. If physiotherapy is not the right answer, he will say so.
How you move now, what has become difficult, and what you want to be able to do again. Measured properly, so progress can be measured too.
Exercises sized to where you are today, not to a textbook. Family kept informed, with your permission.
Questions
Colchester visits are usually booked a few days to a week ahead, because it is the far end of the patch and Reef groups them together. If it is urgent, say so when you ring and he will tell you honestly what he can do.
The visit is the same length and the same price wherever it happens. The travel is Reef’s problem rather than yours. What the distance changes is how much notice is useful, not what you get.
No. You can contact Reeflex directly. If it helps to keep your GP or the team at Colchester Hospital informed, we will do that with your permission.
Yes, and a good deal of the work is care home based. That runs a little differently, so there is a separate page for care homes.
£120 for the first assessment and £100 for follow-up visits. There is no package to sign up to and no minimum number of sessions. The first phone call is free.
Yes. Wivenhoe, West Bergholt, Marks Tey, Dedham, Tiptree, Layer de la Haye and the villages either side of the A12 are all within range. Ring and ask if you are not sure.
Get in touch
The first phone call is free and there is no obligation afterwards. If Reeflex is not the right fit, Reef will tell you what is.
