Perceived feasibility of an occupation-based telerehabilitation intervention for older adults with chronic health conditions in Israel.
Aviva Beit Yosef, Talia Maeir, Fatena Khalailh and 1 others
PMID 35847184WHAT IT FOUND
Ten Israeli occupational therapists saw value in telerehabilitation for home-based goal setting but feared safety risks without hands-on contact.
They doubted patient compliance and technology skills, suggesting it should augment, not replace, face-to-face care.
Key findings
01Therapists identified the ability to observe and guide patients in their natural home environment as a primary advantage for setting accurate goals.
02Safety concerns regarding the lack of physical assistance and the potential for patients to compensate with incorrect movements were major perceived disadvantages.
03Most therapists were unsure if older patients would be interested in or comply with the program, citing technology barriers and cognitive status as inhibiting factors.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The sample was small (n=10) and homogeneous, consisting only of therapists from one large hospital in Jerusalem, which limits generalizability to other settings or rural areas. Participants had no experience with telerehabilitation and only heard a description of the protocol; they did not observe a real therapy session, so their concerns may reflect unfamiliarity rather than practical experience. Member checking was not performed, which can reduce the reliability of the qualitative themes.
Declared interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest and received no financial support for the research.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the therapists' agreement on functional goals as evidence that telerehabilitation is effective for older adults. The study reports perceptions of feasibility among inexperienced clinicians who never delivered the intervention, not patient outcomes.