Brain training program helps people with learning difficulties, company says

A cognitive testing and training firm on Thursday said that its brain training program has delivered significant results in improving the cognitive skills of people with learning difficulties.

In a media event at Bonifacio Global City on Thursday, BrainRx Philippines showcased its cognitive brain training assessments founded on neuroplasticity, or the idea that the brain can adapt and refunction according to experience, learning, or injury.

“The backbone of our entire program is this concept called neuroplasticity. At BrainRx...we believe that the brain can constantly be rewired. So in that sense, anything can be changed, it can be enhanced, it can be improved…We build stronger brains across all of our centers globally,” said brain trainer Santino Joven in an interview with GMA News Online.

According to co-founder and center director Joy Go, BrainRx Philippines was established in 2012 and now has four centers in Metro Manila and one in Tarlac.

Clients include learners clinically diagnosed with ADHD, ASD, dyslexia, and other issues that impede their cognitive capacity to some degree.

“When the student comes to us and let's say may diagnosis siya, it helps because we know there's a starting point… but we go beyond the label.  Each child that comes to us, we check ano ba yung cognitive skills niya. We work on the cognitive skills… The cognitive skills play a role in learning, reading, and thinking,” Go said.

BrainRx begins its assessment with a simple test that measures a student’s cognitive functions pertaining to memory, visual and auditory processing, logic and reasoning, and processing speed.

From there, learners are provided with a specific program best suited for their needs.

Each learning session takes around an hour each for a period between two to 12 months, after which students are again assessed to check their progress.

Go said some medical professionals now refer the BrainRx program for patients as a possible part of their treatment or therapy.

“Well, if the referrals are continuous, and even some schools also refer to us. So if they keep on referring, I guess they see a difference. And it's normally the parents naman, they also always see a difference.  A lot of them… Sometimes within two to three months,” Go said.

Joven stressed that the company's services are not a medical intervention. 

“We're one of the interventions that some doctors do send their clients to… We're just one of many. That's why we work in collaboration with occupational therapists, sometimes speech pathologists, and developmental pediatricians, but what we target primarily are the cognitive skills,” he said.

The BrainRx staff added that their services are not limited to people with learning difficulties but are open to anyone who wants to train their mind.

“That's also the beauty of our program. Everyone can benefit from this program in some shape, way, or form. So, you don't necessarily have to have some sort of learning struggle,” Joven said.

“BrainRx has been part of this network that's really been advocating for the needs of students who fall under these categories, [but] again, everyone can benefit from the things that BrainRx does. We really take a lot of pride in that,” he added.

BrainRx Philippines offers an initial assessment test at P3,500 per client, after which each training program is specifically curated suited to each student’s needs and preferences.

The World Health Organization (WHO) reported in September 2025 that one in seven people in the world live with mental disorders, which manifest many types including neurodevelopmental disorders that impede an individual’s cognitive and behavioral capacities.

Neurodevelopmental disorders included, but are not limited to, disorders of intellectual development, autism spectrum disorder, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). — BM, GMA Integrated News