Development of a teletechnology protocol for in-home rehabilitation

Abstract

Abstract-Our ability to provide in-home rehabilitation is limited by distance and available personnel. We may be able to meet some rehabilitation needs with videoconferencing technology. This article describes the feasibility of teletechnology for delivering multifactorial, in-home rehabilitation interventions to community-dwelling adults recently prescribed a mobility aid. We used standard telephone lines to provide twoway video and audio interaction. The interventions included prescription of and/or training in functionally based exercises, home-hazard assessment, assistive technology, environmental modifications, and adaptive strategies. Patients were evaluated in three transfer and three mobility tasks, and appropriate treatment was provided over the course of four visits. To date, 13 of the 14 subjects enrolled in the rehabilitation study have completed all four visits (56 visits total). Equipment-related problems were most common early in the study, particularly on the initial visit to a subject's house.We identified (mean ± standard deviation [SD]) 13.1 ± 7.9 mobility/self-care problems per subject and made 12.5 ± 8.3 recommendations per subject to address those problems. At 6-week follow-up, 60.1 percent of our recommendations had been implemented. The greatest number of problems was identified for tub transfers (mean ± SD = 3.4 ± 1.4), the greatest number of recommendations was made for toilet transfers (mean ± SD = 3.1 ± 3.4), and the most frequently implemented recommendations were for transition between locations. Overall, our results show promise that both the telerehabilitation technology and intervention procedures are feasible.

A Review of the Evidence for the Use of Telemedicine Within Stroke Systems of Care

“…Data presented on 13 patients (mean age, 58.2 years) indicated that on average 13.1 mobility/self-care problems per patient were identified and an average of 12.5 recommendations per patient were made to address these problems. 94 In summary, the findings suggest that HQ-VTC for telerehabilitation is feasible for delivery of in-home rehabilitation care.…”

“…94 The intervention used regular telephone service to provide low-quality 2-way video and audio interaction between the occupational therapist and patient regarding prescription and/or training in functionally based exercises,…”

Application of a Telemedical Tool in an Isolated Island and a Disaster Area of the Great East Japan Earthquake

“…In the literature [3], the authors pointed out the superiority of the proposed system to the other types of telehealthcare systems [4]- [9]. That is to say, the proposed portable high-definition video transmission system based on mobile communication is unique in comparison with other similar systems [7]- [9].…”

Telerehabilitation assessment using the Functioning Everyday with a Wheelchair-Capacity instrument

“…TR can be defined as the application of telecommunication, remote sensing and operation, and computing technologies to the delivery of medical rehabilitation services at a distance. A growing amount of literature exists on the use of technology for remote assessment and intervention in medicine [1] and rehabilitation [2][3][4][5][6]. Schmeler et al recently reported on the state of the science of clinical and vocational assistive technology TR applications, outlining the current research, opportunities, and challenges [7].…”