Telemedicine in Rehabilitation - An Overview

What Is Telemedicine?

Telemedicine is the tethering of healthcare services with technology. It uses communication and digital technology to manage healthcare services. Technology, in the form of devices like computers, smartphones, and tablets, may be used in telemedicine. Telemedicine plays a vital role in improving healthcare services. It provides virtual consultation to access health care services to people in remote areas. Telemedicine provides coordinated, efficient, and timely treatment to those in need. Telemedicine has made the process of making appointments and consulting the doctor by making it easy to go through the entire process by staying in one’s own home, office, or vehicle.

What Is Rehabilitation?

Rehabilitation refers to the medical care and assistance to improve a person's physical, cognitive, or mental abilities that enhance functioning and daily routine performance. Rehabilitation benefits people who lost their abilities due to the following conditions:

• Severe infections.

• Injury or trauma.

• After major medical treatments.

• Stroke (damage to the brain due to an interrupted blood supply).

• After major surgery.

• Genetic disorders cause disability.

• Developmental defects.

• Severe pain.

What Is the Use of Telemedicine in Rehabilitation?

Telemedicine plays an essential role in the field of rehabilitation. The application of telemedicine services to deliver rehabilitation care to the needful is called telerehabilitation. Telerehabilitation will provide rehabilitation services virtually to the patient's home or place of choice. Different telecommunication technology types, such as websites, computer programs, or videos, will be used for telerehabilitation. Required types of equipment will be provided to the patient to carry out rehabilitation techniques at home. Patients who find difficulty in traveling to get access to rehabilitation services due to their inability to travel, living conditions, or their home location in remote areas benefit from telerehabilitation.

What Are the Benefits of Telemedicine in Rehabilitation?

The following are the benefits of telemedicine in rehabilitation:

• It reduces the traveling inconvenience faced by disabled people.

• The cost of hospital accommodation can be saved if the person opts for telerehabilitation.

• People with disabilities get benefitted as they can receive a wide range of rehabilitation services.

• Telerehabilitation is a time-saving technique that could save long waiting hours.

• Traditional rehabilitation can make the patients stay away from their families, and the cost and time factors may create stress. This can be reduced in the case of telerehabilitation.

• It provides physical rehabilitation for those who have suffered from spinal cord injury, stroke, and multiple sclerosis (an autoimmune disease where the protective covering of the nerves gets affected).

• Speech-language pathologists provide teletherapy for those with language, cognition, speech, or swallowing disorders. It may be provided as an online therapy or a hybrid therapy. In hybrid therapy, face-to-face and online sessions will be combined.

• Video conferencing, telephone, or internet services may be utilized to provide audiology services. This facility is termed tele-audiology. Personalized hearing care will be provided to those having hearing disabilities.

• Telerehabilitation also provides convenient assessment to the needed person.

• Telerehabilitation also uses virtual reality and robotics to monitor, assess and care for disabled people.

What Are the Limitations of Telemedicine in Rehabilitation?

The following are the limitations of using telemedicine features in rehabilitation:

• The healthcare provider may receive less information about the condition of the patient, which may be inadequate in planning proper rehabilitation techniques.

• The patient or the healthcare provider may have minimal access to the required information technology.

• All the rehabilitation techniques cannot be provided online. Some rehabilitation services require face-to-face consultation and direct participation of the healthcare provider and the patient. Telerehabilitation cannot be used in such cases; if used, it will not help reach the required goal.

• The patient may not get access to the required equipment for rehabilitation. Even if they get access to the necessary equipment, they may be unable to use or operate them, making the rehabilitation process difficult and ineffective.

• Healthcare providers require special training to practice in the field of rehabilitation. This is to familiarize them with the technology and techniques associated with teletherapy. Inadequate training will make it hard for the healthcare provider to deliver the service.

What Are the Types of Rehabilitation in Telemedicine?

Some types of rehabilitation services provided through telemedicine are as follows:

• Physical Telerehabilitation: If a person faces a physical disability, physical telerehabilitation may be helpful, especially if they find it difficult to travel to the clinic or hospital. A physiotherapist with knowledge of telemedicine will initiate the treatment. The patient will be asked to consult the healthcare provider online for demonstrations and advice on administering the techniques.

• Speech-Language Teletherapy: In the case of speech and language disabilities, a speech-language pathologist will initiate teletherapy to improve the condition. The consultations may be done online, or the patient may be asked to attend a face to face sessions initially and continue with online sessions afterward. It will be more convenient for the patients, especially for the least technique-sensitive therapy.

• Audiology Teletherapy: Audiology teletherapy involves providing telerehabilitation to improve the listening and hearing-related disabilities of the patient. An experienced audiologist will provide the service. They will diagnose, assess and treat the disabilities online or in a hybrid manner (a combination of online sessions and face-to-face consultations).

• Tele-Psycotherapy: Psychologists provide online therapy to the needed patients through tele-psychotherapy. This has gained popularity in the current tears as people have become more vulnerable to psychological disturbances, increasing the demand for psychotherapy. Online therapy sessions benefit individuals who find it hard to get time to travel to the clinic or hospitals to get direct therapy. Virtual therapies are effective as treatment activities can be easily done online.

Conclusion

Telemedicine is using technology to provide healthcare services to the needful. Telemedicine plays a crucial role in providing rehabilitation for disabled people. Telerehabilitation is a convenient service, especially for those who find it difficult to travel due to financial, physical, and lifestyle factors. But the healthcare provider and the patient should be aware of the technology necessary to conduct online rehabilitation services. In addition, the patient should also be taught to use the necessary equipment or handle the activities associated with the rehabilitation service.