Benefits and Challenges of Telerehabilitation Use By Pediatric Physiotherapists During the COVID-19 Pandemic In Western and Southern India: A Cross Sectional Survey

Abstract

As the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic spread, many physiotherapists chose telerehabilitation (TR) to continue delivering therapy. This study was conducted to document the perceived benefits and challenges of TR faced by pediatric physiotherapists in western and southern India. Using the snowball method, electronic survey forms were distributed to 275 pediatric physiotherapists in Western and Southern India; 110 responses were available for analysis. A majority of respondents had experience with TR (n=83, 75.5%), while others had never used TR (n=27, 24.5%). TR was reported to be less effective than in-person therapy for treating children and adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic. Therapists reported significant difficulties during TR sessions; these included assessing and modifying exercises for children. As the popularity of TR grows, pediatric physiotherapists will need to be aware of the benefits and challenges they will face during TR sessions. Most pediatric physiotherapists believed the interaction between parents and therapists is a requisite for optimal service delivery.

Relationship-driven, family-centered care via TelePT: Reflections in the wake of COVID-19

“…Acceptance was also facilitated by the quality and reliability of the public internet infrastructure across which participants delivered care. In contrast to other reports around the world ( Chivate et al, 2022 ), neither they, nor the families they worked with, regardless of socio-economic factors, experienced problems with basic internet connectivity that would have constituted an essential barrier to distance interaction. Kory’s noted that the technology underlying telePT was easy to learn and operate, highly familiar to her, but how to deliver therapy in the small interactive window afforded by a computer, or often, a cell phone was another matter.…”

“…Though telehealth had been a technologically viable adjunct to standard clinical care for several decades ( Libin et al, 2016 ), it was the need to enforce social distancing on a global scale that brought the telehealth modality into the spotlight ( Doraiswamy et al, 2020 ). In the specific case of pediatric physical therapy (PT), there has been a system-wide and international focus turned toward telehealth, with a commensurate investment of resources to understand what works, what does not work, and what can be improved in the delivery of therapeutic services from a distance ( Rabatin et al, 2020 ; Chivate et al, 2022 ; Daube Fishman and Elkins, 2022 ; Dostie et al, 2022 ).…”

Implementation of physical rehabilitation programs for children with cancer across low‐ and middle‐income countries: A need of the hour perspective

“…Organizational and technical factors comprised inadequate governance, insufficient parent organizations’ financial support, poor learning‐training skills of technological personnel, cyber security issues, internet connectivity dependency, high costs, and licensing software needs 38 . Exclusive to childhood cancers, advantages of telemedicine during the COVID‐19 pandemic included feasibility, emotional health support, and application of various social media platforms (blogs, web page communities), alongside challenges faced by physical therapists involving tedious methods of assessment, supervision, and modification of exercises in instructing children and parents through the internet during consultation services 39,40 …”

Adverse events associated with the delivery of telerehabilitation: A scoping review protocol

“…The convenience of telerehabilitation may also lead to higher attendance rates for individuals with busy schedules or other commitments. It may also be a less expensive alternative to in-person rehabilitation due to decreased travel expenses [4]. Multiple systematic reviews have shown the effectiveness of telerehabilitation; for instance, Dias et al found high-quality evidence that telerehabilitation was not different from other interventions for adults with physical disabilities in terms of improvements in pain, physical function, and long-term quality of life [5][6][7][8][9].…”