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<p><strong>What if you could reduce physical therapy work that normally takes hours to just minutes, without compromising on quality or personal contact? For the teams at Weerfit in Enschede and Deventer, this has become the norm. Guided by a clear vision of measurable, reproducible care, the organization develops its own technology, with AI serving as a silent accelerator in the background.</strong></p><p><img src="https://cms.aihub-oost.nl/uploads/Weerfit_1827cbae5d.jpg?token=IvRHJ9-QgSLw3pbw04HkBsP2D8J18aRPkffzQ8sQjws&amp;expires=1777471801" alt="Weerfit.jpg" srcset="https://cms.aihub-oost.nl/uploads/thumbnail_Weerfit_1827cbae5d.jpg?token=VqPxBhDFNTCViU11EBzl0AgC8zGfENPHvT6OpRFL5dI&amp;expires=1777471801 162w,https://cms.aihub-oost.nl/uploads/small_Weerfit_1827cbae5d.jpg?token=j_L6tkay1PL9RRkcopeaBgcOPVUoY6hOpIXtNEm9mpk&amp;expires=1777471801 500w,https://cms.aihub-oost.nl/uploads/medium_Weerfit_1827cbae5d.jpg?token=UdcvRTtTY9i_3D-ToIIoJvZZkNYh_lkuSwzpPrLeTl8&amp;expires=1777471801 750w," sizes="100vw" width="768" height="741"></p><p><a href="https://weerfit.nl/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Weerfit</a> is celebrating its fifteenth anniversary this year and has grown from a home-based practice into a healthcare organization with three locations. Founder and healthcare innovator Job Weerstra has held one clear conviction from the very beginning: good care must be measurable. Not only to demonstrate results, but above all to help people recover more consistently, quickly, and effectively.</p><p>“If you don’t take objective measurements at the start of a treatment plan, what exactly are you treating?” says Weerstra. That question forms the foundation of Weerfit and of how the company uses AI.</p><h2>Healthcare Is Difficult to Reproduce</h2><p>In physical therapy, treatment outcomes depend heavily on the individual therapist. Experience, interpretation, and time play a major role. That makes care human, but also vulnerable when it comes to transferability and consistency—especially now that staff shortages and administrative burdens are increasing the pressure even further.</p><p>Weerstra ran into this issue in his practice: “Sometimes I’d spend three and a half hours with a single client. The results were excellent, but it’s not sustainable—not for the therapist and not for the healthcare system.” The central question became: How do you maintain quality while still delivering the same—or even better—results with less time and fewer people?</p><h2>AI Recognizes the Body’s Recovery Phase</h2><p>Based on this vision, the spin-off EDF International was founded, centered around EctoDermFix technology: advanced hardware and smart algorithms that not only measure the body’s response to physical and mental stress but also actively influence it. This technology is incorporated into wearables: suits and T-shirts worn directly on the body.</p><p>Weerstra compares the body to a keyboard: “By pressing the right keys, you can influence specific functions.” In practice, this is achieved through haptic vibrations applied to carefully selected points on the body. This supports communication between the body and the brain, contributing to faster recovery, better stress regulation, and improved physical performance.</p><p>AI plays a crucial role in this. At Weerfit, they continuously collect data on strength, mobility, and speed. AI algorithms analyze this data and draw connections to previous treatment courses. This allows the system to recognize whether someone is in a recovery, stress, or overload phase. These insights are translated into concrete treatment decisions, such as adjusting the intensity, duration, or sequence of the programs.</p><p>Whereas healthcare previously relied heavily on experience and intuition, AI-driven data analysis makes it possible to substantiate, improve, and consistently apply treatments. This is essential in a healthcare sector where demand is growing and the number of available professionals is declining.</p><h2>Healthcare innovation doesn’t happen in isolation </h2><p>The further development of this technology does not happen in isolation. Weerfit works closely with academic institutions such as the University of Twente and Saxion University of Applied Sciences, where students and researchers contribute ideas on data analysis, validation, and further development. “Innovations like this don’t emerge from a single discipline. You need practical experience, but you also need people who look at things differently, measure differently, and ask different questions. It is precisely by combining different perspectives that you can make healthcare smarter without losing sight of its essence,” says Weerstra.</p><p>Collaboration with partners in the field is also essential. In early 2026, a pilot project was launched at the East Netherlands Police Dispatch Center in Apeldoorn. Employees there work under high mental pressure and unpredictable stressful situations. In this demanding environment, EDF International is investigating how objectively measured stress relates to perceived stress, and how AI can help identify signs of burnout in a timely manner.</p><h2>People Come First</h2><p>Weerfit’s ambitions extend beyond the treatment room. Ultimately, it’s about helping people navigate life with greater strength, fitness, and resilience. Technology—and AI in particular—is not an end in itself, but a tool.</p><p>“AI helps us scale up care at a time when there are fewer and fewer therapists,” says Weerstra. “This frees up time for healthcare professionals to focus on what really makes a difference: the human touch. This is and will always be the core of effective treatment.”</p>

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<p>What if you could reduce physical therapy work that normally takes hours to just minutes, without compromising on quality or personal contact? For the teams at Weerfit in Enschede and Deventer, this has become the norm. Guided by a clear vision of measurable, reproducible care, the organization develops its own technology, with AI acting as a silent accelerator in the background.</p>