Telerehabilitation Use With Spinal Cord Injury: Occupational Therapists' Perspective.

IMPORTANCE

Telerehabilitation provides people with spinal cord injury (SCI) an alternative mode of accessing specialized health care. Further research on occupational therapy practitioners' perspectives of telerehabilitation may provide additional evidence for clinical practice implementation.

OBJECTIVE

To explore urban occupational therapists' perspectives on the benefits of and barriers to telerehabilitation use with SCI.

DESIGN

A qualitative study design using a demographic questionnaire and a single, individual semistructured interview. Thematic analyses included member checking, constant comparative analysis, triangulation, and self-description and self-reflexivity.

SETTING

Residential and community settings.

PARTICIPANTS

Six occupational therapists with a range of experience in SCI rehabilitation were recruited using purposeful sampling.

RESULTS

Six participants were interviewed, and four primary themes emerged: (1) communication, (2) personal factors, (3) benefits, and (4) barriers.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

Telerehabilitation offers numerous potential benefits for SCI intervention. This study provides an understanding of practitioner concerns and potential barriers to use. The results indicate that a hybrid model incorporating both in-person and distance-based treatment is likely optimal. What This Article Adds: Our results provide information that addresses practitioner concerns and recommendations for the use of telerehabilitation with people with SCI. As practitioner concerns are identified and addressed, telerehabilitation may increase in the U.S. health care system, potentially facilitating an alternative treatment delivery method for underserved populations.