Advanced Technology in a Real-World Rehabilitation Setting: Longitudinal Observational Study on Clinician Adoption...

Area of Science:

• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Health Technology
• Clinical Implementation Science

Background:

• Advanced technologies offer potential benefits in rehabilitation, including increased therapy dosage and reduced clinician workload.
• However, inconsistent implementation, low clinician uptake, and technology abandonment hinder widespread adoption.
• A new technology therapy center provided a unique setting to study real-world technology integration.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the implementation and adoption patterns of advanced rehabilitation technologies in a diverse clinical setting.
• To understand how technology use varies across different patient populations and rehabilitation services.

Main Methods:

• A longitudinal observational study was conducted over 12 months in an Australian rehabilitation organization.
• 119 allied health clinicians utilized 21 advanced technologies (robotic, VR, sensor-based) with patients undergoing neurological, spinal cord injury, or general rehabilitation.
• Data on technology use frequency, patient demographics, clinician discipline, service setting, and therapy dosage were collected.

Main Results:

• Advanced technology was used 4208 times with 269 patients, predominantly by physiotherapists (65%) and occupational therapists (33%).
• Outpatient services accounted for the majority of use (94%), particularly for patients with stroke (47%).
• Robotic device use was higher for inpatient services and patients with spinal cord injury.

Conclusions:

• The utilization of advanced rehabilitation technology is not uniform, varying significantly by patient diagnosis and clinical setting.
• Effective integration requires aligning technology with the specific rehabilitation context and providing tailored clinician training.
• Further practice-based research is essential to guide implementation strategies and confirm technology effectiveness.