Development and Evaluation of a Training Package to support the Remote Assessment and Management of People with Movement Impairment and Disability

The problem: Physical disabilities are common throughout life. Usually, hands-on detailed movement assessment results in a targeted rehabilitation plan, with ongoing evaluation required as needs change. During Covid-19, many people, of all ages, have received no rehabilitation, & rehabilitation need is escalating with recovering Covid-19 patients; creating a "tsunami of rehabilitation need" (1). In response, clinicians are rapidly adapting & creating telerehabilitation solutions to manage caseloads & prioritise those at risk of deterioration, with little specific guidance, training or support. Professional bodies & clinical networks highlight the marked variations in approaches used, expressing concerns about potential inequity & inefficiency. Our rapid literature review underlines this problem, citing lack of specific guidance/training as barriers to effective telerehabilitation implementation. This has immediate & long-term relevance given the "new-norm". Research aim: Develop a Toolkit & Training package for the current/future workforce, wherein telerehabilitation will be integral to assessment & management. Study Design: Knowledge to Action Framework, methodology commonly used in implementation science. Key steps include: (i) literature review to inform guidance/provide examples of best practice; (ii) national online survey to identify clinicians' needs, (iii) production & evaluation of the Toolkit through iterative cycles of data collection, evaluation & refinement (initially in the SouthWest); (iv) national roll-out/evaluation, (v) Production of final training package for use within clinical/educational arenas. Study outputs: Practical guidance, process pathways & training to optimise the confidence & competence of clinicians to effectively implement telerehabilitation in people with physical disability from across the lifespan.