Telerehabilitation in the Finnish Outpatient Rehabilitation Setting from the Perspective of the Socio-Technical Systems Theory

Tuija Partanen (), Riitta Seppänen-Järvelä, Sinikka Hiekkala and Jari Lindh
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Tuija Partanen: Kela Research, Social Insurance Institution of Finland, FI-00250 Helsinki, Finland
Riitta Seppänen-Järvelä: Kela Research, Social Insurance Institution of Finland, FI-00250 Helsinki, Finland
Sinikka Hiekkala: The Finnish Association of People with Physical Disabilities, FI-00280 Helsinki, Finland
Jari Lindh: Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Lapland, FI-96101 Rovaniemi, Finland

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 15, 1-14

Abstract: Background: In the development of effective telerehabilitation (TR) interventions, understanding the various characteristics affecting its practice is essential. Remote connection creates a new technically shaped environment for therapy and, therefore, previous therapy methods do not work the same way as before. Objective: The objective of this survey was to describe the practice of TR through the socio-technical theory approach. Methods: The 629 respondents to the online questionnaire included music therapists, occupational therapists, speech and language therapists, physiotherapists, and neuropsychologists. The materials consisted of five open-ended questions. The analysis combined data-based and theory-based analysis. Results: In the data-based content analysis, we identified three main categories and eight generic categories, whereas in the theory-based, we categorised the main results according to the Fit Between Individuals, Tasks, Technology, and Environment (FITTE) framework dimensions. TR is everyday-life based, it requires shared participation, and the approach has to include coaching and collaboration with the client and their close associates. The everyday-life environment is one of the main dimensions that affect all the other dimensions. Conclusions: TR can be seen as technology-mediated home-based rehabilitation, as it can integrate rehabilitation into the client’s everyday life. In TR, therapy becomes multilateral and it creates a new kind of shared partnership into outpatient therapy.

Keywords: telerehabilitation; telepractice; COVID-19 pandemic; rehabilitation professionals; physiotherapy; occupational therapy; speech and language therapy; neuropsychology; music therapy; socio-technical system theory (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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