C2 International Course. Dr. Manuel Rigo, Ilse de Wilde, Mariette Zoer and Marjan de Jonge. Zwolle, The Netherlands

Dear Colleagues and Friends of the BSPTS

Hello from Zwolle (The Netherlands). We have just finished one of the last C2 courses of the old Educational plan. We meet again here, after two years and three months since our last course in the ScoliosisCareClinic, managed by Marjan de Jonge. I have been in charge of lectures, revisiting the BSPTS Rigo Concept PSSE, discussing about adult scoliosis and adult spinal deformities and finally about Bracing. Ilse de Wilde – Kramer and Mariëtte Zoer – Kosse (from the Scoliosis Care Clinic Team) moderated the ‘case report presentations’ and presented some different strategies of muscle activation. They also participated as supervisors during all the practical ‘labs’ with patients (and this is the most important part of the course). We had also an extraordinary support from Gari Aristegui, the General Manager of the BSPTS. He presented the new BSPTS structure to all the participants and recorded several interviews with Marjan, Mariëtte, Ilse and some of the participants in the course. Gari also presented the SOSORT 2022, which, he will be hosting in San Sebastian (‘You will never forget it’). Eight physiotherapists participated in the course, Cindy, Jennifer, Simona, Tomer, Chiara, Sandra, Iurii and Abigail. They made a fantastic job, showing an amazing positive and rapid evolution from the first day of the course to the last. That means that they came to the course with their home work well done and had the chance to get rapidly all the important things we tried to transmit them. Thus we have formed a great team with the care of the staff of the Scoliosis Care Clinic, managed by Marjan, who took care of everything like usual, every little detail, including delicious recipes that she cooked for all of us with the love of a mother. What to say, thanks Marjan for your incredible work. We do not want to forget about Beth Janssen. She has been for many years the main responsible, with Marjan, of the C2 courses in Zwolle. It was not possible to meet with her in Zwolle this year due to the Covid, we missed her a lot but her spirit has been with us all the time, specially the last day when all the participants were examined officially (the exam runs during the whole week indeed). Beth has always inspired us. The way she has always interacted with her colleagues, based on respect, love and compassion has been a source of inspiration for us and we felt she was with us specially this last day. As a whole this has been a sort of reviving experience announcing that maybe, maybe, the Covid is something that we will finally leave back, coming back to our classical courses. But we have also learned during this ‘long and cold winter’ that the new technologies offer us a unique opportunity to be all better connected, with the possibility to share continuously our experiences and knowledge. Gari will guide us in this new world throughout our new BSPTS.net. After this long and cold winter, ‘here comes the sun’ (George Harrison said).

Few words about the evolution of the Concept. We cannot forget that no matter how much we try to standardize a treatment, define General Principles, Specific Principles of Correction and Pre-Defined Strategies of Correction, all supported by a reliable classification of clinical types with a good radiological correspondence, at the end of the day, the ‘correction’ is more an ‘art’ based on individual patient’s characteristics, knowledge, experience and technical skills of the physiotherapists than a simple application of a well learned procedure, thus, it is something we can hardly teach but that you have to learn by doing. When you think you have apprehended it you realize it is necessary to start again from zero, several times during your professional life, I think all the Teachers have experienced this. This is a difficult but exciting way of never-ending learning. We, the Teachers, can just open the door to this way to you.

Many greetings to all of you from Zwolle, Manuel Rigo

Just finished, probably, our last international C2 week in the Netherlands. What an amazing week we had! With eight therapist from all over the world we went deeper into the scoliosis and BSPTS Concept by Rigo. It was my second time as an instructor, so it was quite exciting. I have experienced it as an interesting, busy, but also enjoyable week! I’m very happy and proud of the results that the therapist showed during their exam at the end of the week. Once again congratulations to all of them!

I’m looking forward to next year, hopefully we will have then our first (international) L2 education in The Netherlands!