“Picking up balls with chopsticks, shooting from a fixed spot, propelling a wheelchair with one hand, propelling it with both hands…” Recently, in the first-floor lobby of Nanjing Zijin Hospital, more than twenty patients undergoing rehabilitation for stroke and other conditions enthusiastically took part in a rehabilitation‑patient sports event organized by the hospital. Through warm, peer‑to‑peer interactions and heartfelt exchanges between patients and medical staff, smiles continuously lit up the faces of these recovering patients, helping to boost their motivation and initiative in rehabilitation training.

　　“35, 36, 37…” At the event site, the hospital set up a “chopsticks‑ball‑picking” game. Participants had three minutes to use chopsticks to pick up ping‑pong balls from plastic baskets; the person who collected the most wins. While this may seem simple for most people, it’s far from easy for patients recovering from strokes or other conditions—holding each ball steady and transferring it from one basket to another can be quite challenging. In the end, Wang Bing (a pseudonym), who is undergoing stroke rehabilitation, clinched the championship by picking up 38 ping‑pong balls in three minutes.

　　In another event, “Targeted Basket‑Throwing,” contestants must toss a “sponge bag” into a bucket positioned about two meters away. Even for patients undergoing rehabilitation, this task is far from easy. “All right, speed it up a bit—ten already!” At the competition site, Wang Ping (a pseudonym), who has been receiving three months of post‑stroke rehabilitation, was “shooting” with encouragement from his family. Due to limited mobility and other factors, each throw of the sponge bag required considerable effort; after more than a dozen attempts, sweat had already begun to bead on his forehead. “When I first arrived, I couldn’t move one half of my arm at all. But after daily rehabilitation sessions, that previously stiff half‑arm is now starting to move a little,” said Wang Ping’s family.

　　In the end, Wang Ping managed to sink 14 shots in three minutes. However, his successor, Wang Jun (a pseudonym), proved even more impressive: having recovered from a stroke just a month or two earlier, he nailed 19 “baskets” in the same time, clinching first place in the event. “His stroke was relatively mild, so he’s already made a strong recovery in barely a couple of months—going forward, he should have no trouble taking care of himself,” said Wang Jun’s family.

　　By taking part in this fun-filled rehabilitation sports event, many patients and their families expressed great satisfaction. “Activities like these boost patients’ motivation to engage in rehabilitation and help them clarify their recovery goals,” said one family member. “Please organize more events like this—staying in the hospital can feel so heavy. These kinds of activities make us happy and are even more beneficial for our loved ones’ recovery,” added another.

　　Qi Yuliang, deputy director of the Rehabilitation Center at Nanjing Zijin Hospital, explained that for patients who have lost motor control due to stroke or other conditions, an optimistic rehabilitation mindset and a strong sense of purpose and aspiration are even more critical than the rehabilitation therapies themselves. Healthcare professionals should prioritize addressing patients’ social and emotional challenges, rather than focusing solely on physical rehabilitation exercises. In a sense, the social and emotional needs of stroke survivors are just as vital to their continued well‑being as their physical recovery; this kind of recreational event is designed precisely to meet those communication and interaction needs, and the hospital plans to organize more such meaningful activities in the future.

　　Nanjing Morning Post / iNanjing Reporter Qian Ming