About JoViPak®
From "Chip Bag" to a JoViPak Product
If you are a lymphedema therapist, you may know them as chip bags, muffs, Schneider Packs or JoViPaks.
The concept is the same. If you trace the technology back to its inception, hopefully you will have an opportunity to meet the inventor; a very dedicated, soft-spoken therapist at the Foeldi Clinic named Bernd Schneider.
In 1987, as he was bandaging a patient from Australia with severe fibrosis, he decided to try cutting up the foam padding into small pieces. He discovered that under compression, these foam chips would not only soften the fibrotic tissue, but would increase the efficacy of his treatment. The rest is history!
More History...In 1993 during my training with Drs. Judith Casley-Smith and her late husband, John, I was introduced to Bernd's "chip bag", or Schneider Pack concept. I brought the technology back to my own lymphedema clinic with a renewed determination to teach patients self-care and ultimately provide them with products that would facilitate successful lymphedema management. By 1995 I had produced the first self-care video, "Self-Care for Post Mastectomy Lymphedema" . There are over 7,000 of these videos in circulation and it is now available in DVD format, and retitled, "Self-Care for Upper Extremity Lymphedema".
As a lymphedema therapist, I realized therapists simply don't have time to make "chip bags" themselves. As a patient educator, I recognized the need to simplify the bandaging aspect of home maintenance programs, particularly if we expect any degree of patient adherence. Once I introduced JoViPaks® into my lymphedema treatment and self-care programs, my concerns about a patient's ability to manage fibrosis were greatly relieved. The varying degrees of pressure created by the foam chips soften fibrotic tissue while still allowing channels for the lymphatic fluid to seek new pathways. After wearing a JoViPak® overnight, under some type of compression, the tissue is soft and pliable and the patient will have a much easier time doing their self-massage (MLD).
About JoViPak®From "Chip Bag" to a Jovipak Product
If you are a lymphedema therapist, you may know them as chip bags, muffs, Schneider Packs or JoViPaK®.
The concept is the same. Our thanks go to the genius of Bernd Schneider, lymphedema therapist for the Foeldi Clinic in Germany, who discovered in the mid 1980's that chipped foam under short-stretch bandages increases the efficacy of CDP (Complete Decongestive Physiotherapy) for the treatment of lymphedema. The varying degrees of pressure created by the foam chips soften fibrotic tissue while still allowing channels for the lymphatic fluid to seek new pathways.
Some history
A member of our Seattle lymphedema support group, who had been successfully treated in Australia by a Casley-Smith therapist, introduced the "chip bag" to me in 1992. In 1993 I trained with the Drs. Judith Casley-Smith and her late husband, John, and brought back the technology to my own lymphedema patients. During this same year, Bernd Schneider was a guest therapist at Dr. Lerner's clinic in New York where he introduced his own "Schneider Packs" to Dr. Lerner's patients.
Patient education
As a lymphedema therapist, I realize therapists simply don't have time to make "chip bags" themselves. As a patient educator, I recognize the need to simplify the bandaging aspect of the home maintenance programs, particularly if we expect any degree of patient compliance. Since I introduced JoViPaks® into my lymphedema treatment and self-care programs, my concerns about a patient's ability to manage fibrosis are greatly relieved.
By wearing a JoViPak® during the night, fibrotic tissue will often soften enough by morning to allow a patient to proceed with their self-massage techniques.
Personal Benefits
In my own practice I have used JoViPaks® to protect bony prominences, i.e. the anterior tibialis and the dorsum of the foot. I have found them very helpful in treating breast, chest wall, and female genital lymphedema. They also work well over the anatomical indentations around the ankle and the knee and benefit in the reshaping of the limb toward the end of treatment. I have even used them under pneumatic pumps, which is the treatment of choice for professional athletes. I continually modify the Ready-made line of JoVi products with new designs and specifications in response to the needs of my fellow therapists and their patients.
About JoAnnJoViPak® Founder and President
JoAnn Rovig CLT-LANA, CNT
JoViPaks® were developed by JoAnn Rovig, CLT-LANA, CNT. She trained at the Vodder School in 1992, with the Casley-Smith's in 1993, Guenter Klose in 1995 and has studied at the Foldi Clinic two times. While serving a two-year term as Secretary of the NLN Board of Directors, JoAnn and her clinic Medical Director, Dr. George Gilman, laid the ground work for the national certification project, now called LANA. She is no longer a practicing therapist, however, she still volunteers her time teaching patient self-care for the NW Lymphedema Education Center in Seattle.
Nutrition and successful lymphedema management
In June 2005, JoAnn received her certification as a nutrition therapist. She feels sound nutrition is the missing link in successful lymphedema management and is incorporating this information into her classes.
Now as a full-time manufacturer, her goal is to develop products to make treatment and home maintenance easier for both therapists and their patients. If you have ideas about how to improve the products or develop new ones, she would love to hear from you. Or better yet, come for a visit. Spending a day at the JoVi facility is the quickest way to understand the product and its applications.
