Telerehabilitation in occupational therapy practice in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Background: In line with Saudi Vision 2030, ways to make rehabilitation accessible and available need to consider telerehabilitation as a potential, but to date, no information is available about Saudi occupational therapy (OT) and this model of care. Aim: to develop an evidence base to support the introduction and implementation of telerehabilitation in OT practice in Saudi Arabia. To do this, existing research about telerehabilitation in Saudi Arabia is identified, characteristics of the OT profession in Saudi Arabia are presented, and OTs' knowledge, perspectives, and attitudes about the current and future use of telerehabilitation are explored. Methods: The study series used a non-clinical case study of OT development in Saudi Arabia, a structured review of the literature regarding telerehabilitation in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, a cross-sectional survey of OTs in Saudi Arabia regarding telerehabilitation based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), and interviews that explored Saudi OTs experiences and perspectives of telerehabilitation in their practice which included the use of this model of care during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown. Results: OT is a rapidly growing but emerging profession in Saudi Arabia. There is evidence that telerehabilitation is used across MENA, with most activities in physiotherapy but non-Saudi examples in OT. The TAM survey revealed positive attitudes and readiness to use telerehabilitation among OTs, with 48.6% of the variability in the intention to use telerehabilitation affected by gender, education level, type of care, attitude towards telerehabilitation, perceived usefulness, technical infrastructure, and sharing of information. The Saudi OTs have had positive experiences using telerehabilitation during the pandemic and identify ways to use and sustain OT telerehabilitation in the future. Conclusion: Telerehabilitation is promising in OT practice in Saudi Arabia.