Rehabilitation for persons with respiratory illnesses
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Rehabilitation for persons with respiratory illnesses is intended for adults aged 18 or over who have been diagnosed with a respiratory illness. The rehabilitation course is offered partially on the service provider’s premises and partially online as remote rehabilitation. Rehabilitation is primarily given in a group setting.
The rehabilitation course is free of charge.
Who is the rehabilitation course for?
This rehabilitation course is suited for adults aged 18 or over
- who have been diagnosed with a respiratory illness
- whose condition requires intensive multidisciplinary support and guidance
- who want to participate in a rehabilitation course that is offered partially in person and partially online.
Rehabilitation is offered separately for the following target groups:
- persons with asthma who are studying or working or about to return to work or who are being paid rehabilitation subsidy (kuntoutustuki)
- persons with asthma who are retired
- persons with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who are studying or working or about to return to work or who are being paid rehabilitation subsidy
- persons with COPD who are retired
- persons diagnosed with a rare respiratory illness who are studying or working or about to return to work or who are retired or being paid rehabilitation subsidy.
Aim of rehabilitation
This rehabilitation course will help you adapt to the changes and new reality brought on by your condition. The aim of this rehabilitation course is to
- secure and improve your capacity for work and study and your functional capacity
- support the self-treatment of your condition
- improve your life management skills and help you find ways to continue to live a full and independent life to the best extent possible despite your condition.
The rehabilitation course also offers you the opportunity to get support from your peers and share your experiences with others.
How rehabilitation works
The rehabilitation course is offered partially on the service provider’s premises and partially online as remote rehabilitation. The rehabilitation needs and goals of each participant are taken into account.
The service provider will contact you before and after the rehabilitation course.
The rehabilitation course is offered separately in Finnish and Swedish. The course is offered in Finnish to Sámi-speaking customers. They can be assigned an interpreter if necessary.
In-person rehabilitation will be given on the service provider’s premises. It lasts for 3 days. You can stay overnight at the rehabilitation facility or travel there from home each day.
The facility offers accommodation in two-person rooms (double rooms). If you want to stay in a single room, you can ask the service provider if they have single rooms available. You have to pay the extra costs of staying in a single room yourself.
During the rehabilitation course, you will work in small groups, participate in group discussions and have one-on-one meetings with rehabilitation experts.
The remote rehabilitation part of the course is implemented over a period of 8 weeks.
The remote rehabilitation includes online rehabilitation, such as online reading material, recordings and videos as well as various assignments and exercises. You can proceed with the online rehabilitation at your own pace and at a time suitable to you. The multidisciplinary team in charge of the remote rehabilitation will monitor your progress and give you advice and feedback. You can borrow a device from the service provider if you need one to participate in the remote rehabilitation. You do not need to have special computer skills to participate in remote rehabilitation.
The remote rehabilitation also includes 3 individual video calls. You can have a family member or friend present during the calls if you want to. Each video call is about 45 minutes.
The remote rehabilitation also includes 3 remote rehabilitation sessions offered in the form of individual and group video calls and online rehabilitation. Each remote rehabilitation session lasts for at least 4 hours. The group video calls are about 60–90 minutes each.
The experts involved in your rehabilitation
The following experts will plan and manage your rehabilitation programme:
- a specialist in respiratory medicine, general practice or occupational health
- a registered nurse, public health nurse or asthma nurse
- a social worker, Bachelor of Social Sciences or rehabilitation instructor
- a physiotherapist.
Depending on your individual needs, other rehabilitation professionals may also take part.
How to apply
You need a medical statement B (B-lausunto) or some other statement on your health issued by a doctor to apply for rehabilitation for persons with respiratory illnesses. For example, you can submit a copy of your medical history (sairauskertomus). The medical statement B or health statement must be dated within the past year.
The medical statement B or health statement must state what condition you have that qualifies you for rehabilitation, how well you can function, what kind of rehabilitation is recommended for you and why.
After you get your medical statement B or health statement, do as follows:
- Complete the application form for discretionary rehabilitation KU 132 (PDF, in Finnish).
- Save the blank form to your device. Do not fill in the form directly in the browser because some of the information may not be saved that way.
- Open the form with Adobe Reader and fill it in.
- Tell us in the application which service provider’s rehabilitation you want to participate in. You can use Kela’s rehabilitation course search (in Finnish and Swedish only) to look up service providers. Type hengityssairaus (respiratory illness) in the search field.
- Save the completed application form on your device. Note that the application must be in PDF format.
- Send the application in the OmaKela e-service (available in Finnish and Swedish).
- Log in to OmaKela and select Tee hakemus (File an application).
- First select Sairastaminen ja kuntoutus (Sickness and rehabilitation). Then select Kuntoutus – tee hakemus (Rehabilitation – Submit an application). Finally, select Harkinnanvarainen kuntoutus (Discretionary rehabilitation).
- If you send your application to Kela in OmaKela, you do not need to sign it.
- If you have supporting documents, send them via OmaKela after you have submitted your application. If they are paper documents, you can photograph them.
- Send us a copy of your medical statement B or the other statement on your health your doctor has issued to you as a supporting document with your application.
- Visit OmaKela to see if Kela has made a decision on your application. We will also send the decision notice to the rehabilitation service provider. This tells the service provider that Kela will pay for your rehabilitation, and the service provider will reserve a place for you on the rehabilitation course.
If you cannot use OmaKela, mail your application to Kela. Save the form to your device and fill it in after saving it. Print out the completed form and send it and any supporting documents to Kela, PL 10, 00056 KELA.
Apply for rehabilitation
Submit your application and supporting documents online.
Let us know if you cannot attend rehabilitation
Remember to tell Kela immediately if you cannot participate in the rehabilitation course. Let us know that you have to cancel by sending a message to us in the OmaKela e-service or by calling our customer service number for rehabilitation clients.
We recommend that you also contact the service provider to let them know you have to cancel.
Check if you can get rehabilitation allowance and travel cost reimbursements
Kela pays rehabilitation allowance to give you financial security during rehabilitation. Kela may also reimburse you for rehabilitation-related travel costs.