Kok Lynn H J, Gu Jenny T, Kung Jessica T Y, Liang Shera S, Gonzalez Pablo Cruz, Toh Fong Mei, Sin Emily, Fong Kenneth N K
Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Rehabilitation Research Institute of Singapore (RRIS), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore, Singapore.
Front Hum Neurosci. 2025 Apr 25;19:1551631. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2025.1551631. eCollection 2025.
Patients with post-acute COVID-19 syndrome, also referred to as "long COVID," may face persistent physical, cognitive and psychosocial symptoms which can be challenging to manage given the strict social distancing measures imposed during the pandemic. Telerehabilitation (TR) became increasingly common during COVID-19 pandemic and has been applied to post-acute COVID-19 conditions in previous clinical studies, and it was reported that patients' symptoms were alleviated and their overall health improved. This study examined the usability and acceptability of TR by occupational therapists delivered for patients suffering from post-acute COVID-19 in Hong Kong.
In this mixed-methods usability study, participants rated items on the System Usability Scale (SUS) and completed a semi-structured questionnaire via audio-recorded telephone calls. Descriptive data were used to summarize the quantitative data, and thematic analysis was applied to analyze the qualitative data.
Twelve participants (mean age 56.5 years) who had completed a 6-week TR program via the Caspar Health system were recruited for the study. A median SUS score of 56.25 was reported for its usability, despite 83% of the participants viewed the TR system as fairly acceptable. Four themes, namely perception of using the TR system - performance expectancy of TR, other psychosocial and environmental factors, and intention to use TR, were generated on the basis of the participants' interviews. Most participants reported their willingness to continue using TR and that they would recommend it to other patients.
Most of the participants were receptive to TR and perceived health benefits from its use. Future research could consider integrating the perspectives of both occupational therapists and patients to generate a more comprehensive understanding of the facilitators of and the barriers to TR for patients who experience long COVID.
新冠后急性综合征患者，也被称为“长新冠”患者，可能面临持续的身体、认知和心理社会症状。鉴于疫情期间实施的严格社交距离措施，这些症状的管理颇具挑战。远程康复（TR）在新冠疫情期间越来越普遍，并且在之前的临床研究中已应用于新冠后急性病症，据报道患者症状得到缓解，整体健康状况有所改善。本研究调查了香港职业治疗师为新冠后急性综合征患者提供的远程康复的可用性和可接受性。
在这项混合方法的可用性研究中，参与者对系统可用性量表（SUS）上的项目进行评分，并通过电话录音完成一份半结构化问卷。描述性数据用于总结定量数据，主题分析用于分析定性数据。
招募了12名通过卡斯帕健康系统完成了为期6周远程康复计划的参与者（平均年龄56.5岁）进行该研究。其可用性的SUS中位数评分为56.25，尽管83%的参与者认为远程康复系统相当可接受。根据参与者的访谈，产生了四个主题，即对使用远程康复系统的认知——远程康复的性能期望、其他心理社会和环境因素以及使用远程康复的意愿。大多数参与者表示愿意继续使用远程康复，并会向其他患者推荐。
大多数参与者接受远程康复，并认为使用它对健康有益。未来的研究可以考虑整合职业治疗师和患者双方的观点，以更全面地了解长新冠患者远程康复的促进因素和障碍。
