Teaching Self-Management Skills in Persons with Chronic Lower Limb Swelling and Limited Mobility: Evidence for Usability of Telerehabilitation

Authors

  • Becky L. Faett University of Pittsburgh
  • David M. Brienza University of Pittsburgh
  • Mary Jo Geyer University of Pittsburgh
  • Leslie A Hoffman University of Pittsburgh

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5195/ijt.2013.6114

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the usability of telerehabilitation as a method of teaching self-management for chronic swelling of the lower limbs in persons with limited mobility. An in-home telerehabilitation self-management education protocol for chronic swelling of the lower limbs, termed Telerehabilitation to Empower You to Manage and Prevent Swelling (TR-PUMPS), was implemented using the Versatile and Integrated System for Telerehabilitation (VISYTER) software platform. Participants (n=11) were 36-79 years old, predominately female (72.7%) and diagnosed with a variety of health conditions. Participants’ perceived usability scores of the remote delivery of TR-PUMPS was high with a median score of 6.67 (range 4.90 - 7.00) on a Likert scale: 1= disagree to 7= agree. There was no correlation between participants’ familiarity with information technology and their perception of telerehabilitation usability. These results support telerehabilitation as a viable method for teaching a home-based, self-management

  

Author Biographies

Becky L. Faett, University of Pittsburgh

PhD Student

Department of Rehabilitation Science and Technology

School of Health and Rehabiltation Sciences

University of Pittsburgh

David M. Brienza, University of Pittsburgh

Professor

Department of Rehabilitation Science and Technology

School of Health and Rehabiltation Sciences

University of Pittsburgh

Mary Jo Geyer, University of Pittsburgh

Assistant Professor

Department of Rehabilitation Science and Technology

School of Health and Rehabiltation Sciences

University of Pittsburgh

Leslie A Hoffman, University of Pittsburgh

Professor

Department of Acute and Tertiary Care

School of Nursing

University of Pittsburgh

 

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Published

2013-06-11

How to Cite

Faett, B. L., Brienza, D. M., Geyer, M. J., & Hoffman, L. A. (2013). Teaching Self-Management Skills in Persons with Chronic Lower Limb Swelling and Limited Mobility: Evidence for Usability of Telerehabilitation. International Journal of Telerehabilitation, 5(1). https://doi.org/10.5195/ijt.2013.6114

Issue

Vol. 5, No. 1, Spring 2013

Section

Research

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