Organizational readiness and rehabilitation professionals’ views on integrating telerehabilitation into service delivery and students’ clinical training: A qualitative study

OBJECTIVE: To assess the readiness of healthcare institutions that serve as clinical platforms for Stellenbosch University’ rehabilitation students, and to explore the opinions of rehabilitation professionals regarding the integration of telerehabilitation (TR) into service delivery and students clinical training. METHODS: This study employed a qualitative research design and involved the participation of fourteen rehabilitation managers. Semi-structured interviews were conducted using both face-to-face and online platforms. Thematic analysis was employed to analyse the collected data. RESULTS: The readiness for implementing TR services varies across different dimensions. Facilities faced challenges related to funding for TR equipment and the absence of policies and guidelines, indicating a lack of financial and governance readiness. Rehabilitation professionals demonstrated high attitudinal readiness but low technical readiness due to a lack of knowledge and skills. Rehabilitation students particularly lacked practical experience, confidence, clinical reasoning and decision-making skills further contributing to low technical readiness. CONCLUSION: Health care institutions are generally not ready for a successful implementation of TR. To improve the readiness, senior management should actively participate and provide financial support, develop policies, guidelines and training programs for rehabilitation professionals. Educational institutions should incorporate TR program into curricula to prepare students to gain practical experience and familiarity with the use of TR technology for their future clinical practice.