Postdoctoral Researcher in Technologies for Home Rehabilitation after Stroke

ETH Zürich; Singapore; Sur place; SGD 55 000 - 75 000; Plein temps

Résumé du poste

The Singapore-ETH Centre, established in 2010 by ETH Zurich and Singapore’s National Research Foundation, brings together researchers to translate knowledge into practical home-based rehabilitation technologies. This postdoctoral role leads the RELab tenoexo development, integrating soft robotics with AI-driven telerehabilitation and home-based therapy within the FHT2 programme.

You will guide a multidisciplinary team to advance clinic-to-home rehabilitation, evaluate the technology in clinical

Responsabilités

• Lead the research team focusing on the development of the RELab tenoexo system for home rehabilitation.

Description du poste

Postdoctoral Researcher in Technologies for Home Rehabilitation after Stroke

The Singapore-ETH Centre was established in 2010 by ETH Zurich - The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and Singapore’s National Research Foundation (NRF), as part of the NRF’s CREATE campus. As ETH Zurich's only research centre outside of Switzerland, the centre has strengthened the research capacity of ETH Zurich to develop sustainable solutions to global challenges in Switzerland, Singapore and the surrounding regions.

The centre serves as an intellectual hub for research, bringing together principal investigators and researchers from diverse disciplines and backgrounds. To promote the exchange of ideas and expertise, our researchers actively collaborate with universities and research institutes and engage with industry and government agencies to translate knowledge to practical solutions to real-world problems.

Project background

Stroke remains a leading cause of disability worldwide. Although improved early stroke response has reduced mortality, it has also produced a growing population of stroke survivors, intensifying the demand for long-term rehabilitation and placing a substantial clinical and economic burden on healthcare systems. Because today’s neurorehabilitation model relies heavily on resource-intensive, therapist-led care, meeting this demand will require scalable, cost-effective solutions that extend beyond the clinic and into the home. To address these needs, the first phase of the Future Health Technologies Programme (FHT1) at the Singapore-ETH Centre (SEC) (https://fht.ethz.ch) developed and piloted innovative upper limb rehabilitation technologies and evaluated them in clinical settings, both in hospital and in the homes of post-stroke subjects. Building on this foundation, FHT2 aims to scale up these technologies and carry out more extensive clinical evaluation, paving the way for technology-based clinic-to-home rehabilitation to be integrated into Singapore’s healthcare system.

Specifically, one of our projects focuses on the development of a soft robotic hand exoskeleton (RELab tenoexo) to enhance upper limb rehabilitation sessions in the clinic (therapy scenario) and allow for additional task-oriented training at home (assistance scenario). A first version of the soft exoskeleton has been developed within FHT1 and a proof-of-concept trial demonstrated preliminary feasibility, with post-stroke subjects using the rehabilitation device at home. However, adherence to home rehabilitation without therapist supervision and support can be challenging, ultimately affecting therapy dose.

Within FHT2, we will complement the exoskeleton with an AI-based digital health intervention, specifically an LLM-based conversational agent that will deliver support via a companion mobile app. The app will serve as both the user interface for daily interaction and support and a digital platform for data collection, remote monitoring, and telerehabilitation. We will also further investigate how neuromodulation could be combined to exoskeleton support in order to boost recovery after stroke. The impact of these technology developments will then be evaluated in the context of a multi-arm rehabilitation intervention at home in the context of a 6-week proof of value clinical trial.

As a postdoctoral researcher, you will be responsible for leading the research team focusing on the development of the RELab tenoexo system that will be used in the