Unlocking the potential of serious games for rehabilitation in low and middle-income countries: addressing potential and current limitations

doi:10.3389/fdgth.2025.1505717

. 2025 Jan 31:7:1505717.

doi: 10.3389/fdgth.2025.1505717. eCollection 2025.

Unlocking the potential of serious games for rehabilitation in low and middle-income countries: addressing potential and current limitations

Diriba Dereje^{1

2}, Dheeraj Lamba³, Teklu Gemechu Abessa^{2

4}, Chala Kenea^{2

5}, Cintia Ramari^{2

6}, Muhammad Osama^{7

8}, Oyéné Kossi^{2

9}, Paul Muteb Boma^{10

11}, Jules Panda^{10

11

12}, Anna Kushnir^{2

13}, Joanna Mourad^{2

14}, Jean Mapinduzi^{2

15}, Maryam Fourtassi¹⁶, Kim Daniels^{2

17}, Judith Deutsch¹⁸, Bruno Bonnechère^{2

17

19}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Institute of Health, Jimma University, Jimma, Ethiopia.
² REVAL Rehabilitation Research Center, Faculty of Rehabilitation Sciences, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium.
³ Department of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Institute of Health, Jimma University, Jimma, Ethiopia.
⁴ Department of Special Needs and Inclusive Education, Jimma University, Jimma, Ethiopia.
⁵ Department of Information Science, Faculty of Computing and Informatics, Jimma Institute of Technology, Jimma University, Jimma, Ethiopia.
⁶ BCTRIMS, Brazilian Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
⁷ Foundation University College of Physical Therapy, Foundation University Islamabad, Islamabad, Pakistan.
⁸ Brainstorm Research, Islamabad, Pakistan.
⁹ ENATSE, Parakou, Benin.
¹⁰ Virtual Rehabilitation Center of Lubumbashi, Institut de Recherche en Science de la Santé, Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo.
¹¹ Reference Centre for Sickle Cell Disease of Lubumbashi, Institut de Recherche en Science de la Santé, Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo.
¹² Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, University of Lubumbashi, Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo.
¹³ Elita Rehabilitation Center, Lviv, Ukraine.
¹⁴ Psychomotor Therapy Institute, Saint-Joseph University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon.
¹⁵ Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation, Department of Clinical Sciences, National Institute of Public Health (INSP), Bujumbura, Burundi.
¹⁶ Laboratory of Life and Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy of Tangier, Abdelmalek Essaadi University, Tétouan, Morocco.
¹⁷ Department of PXL-Healthcare, PXL University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Hasselt, Belgium.
¹⁸ Rutgers School of Health Professions, Newark, NJ, United States.
¹⁹ Technology-Supported and Data-Driven Rehabilitation, Data Sciences Institute, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium.

PMID: 39957725
PMCID: PMC11825514
DOI: 10.3389/fdgth.2025.1505717

Unlocking the potential of serious games for rehabilitation in low and middle-income countries: addressing potential and current limitations

Diriba Dereje et al. Front Digit Health. 2025.

. 2025 Jan 31:7:1505717.

doi: 10.3389/fdgth.2025.1505717. eCollection 2025.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Institute of Health, Jimma University, Jimma, Ethiopia.
² REVAL Rehabilitation Research Center, Faculty of Rehabilitation Sciences, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium.
³ Department of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Institute of Health, Jimma University, Jimma, Ethiopia.
⁴ Department of Special Needs and Inclusive Education, Jimma University, Jimma, Ethiopia.
⁵ Department of Information Science, Faculty of Computing and Informatics, Jimma Institute of Technology, Jimma University, Jimma, Ethiopia.
⁶ BCTRIMS, Brazilian Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
⁷ Foundation University College of Physical Therapy, Foundation University Islamabad, Islamabad, Pakistan.
⁸ Brainstorm Research, Islamabad, Pakistan.
⁹ ENATSE, Parakou, Benin.
¹⁰ Virtual Rehabilitation Center of Lubumbashi, Institut de Recherche en Science de la Santé, Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo.
¹¹ Reference Centre for Sickle Cell Disease of Lubumbashi, Institut de Recherche en Science de la Santé, Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo.
¹² Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, University of Lubumbashi, Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo.
¹³ Elita Rehabilitation Center, Lviv, Ukraine.
¹⁴ Psychomotor Therapy Institute, Saint-Joseph University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon.
¹⁵ Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation, Department of Clinical Sciences, National Institute of Public Health (INSP), Bujumbura, Burundi.
¹⁶ Laboratory of Life and Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy of Tangier, Abdelmalek Essaadi University, Tétouan, Morocco.
¹⁷ Department of PXL-Healthcare, PXL University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Hasselt, Belgium.
¹⁸ Rutgers School of Health Professions, Newark, NJ, United States.
¹⁹ Technology-Supported and Data-Driven Rehabilitation, Data Sciences Institute, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium.

PMID: 39957725
PMCID: PMC11825514
DOI: 10.3389/fdgth.2025.1505717

No abstract available

Keywords: digital health; gamification; healthcare access; low and middle-income countries; rehabilitation; serious games; technology.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The author(s) declared that they were an editorial board member of Frontiers, at the time of submission. This had no impact on the peer review process and the final decision.

Figures

**Figure 1**
Geographical distribution map of collaborations. The size of each circle corresponds to the number of studies and collaborations.

**Figure 2**
Consolidated framework for implementation research CFIR—implementing serious games in LMICs.

See this image and copyright information in PMC

Cited by

Access to healthy ınformatıon: the ınteractıon of medıa lıteracy and health lıteracy.
Mutlu H, Bozkurt G, Öngel G, Gümüşboğa Y. Mutlu H, et al. BMC Public Health. 2025 Aug 16;25(1):2800. doi: 10.1186/s12889-025-24022-2. BMC Public Health. 2025. PMID: 40819030 Free PMC article.

References

1. Jesus TS, Landry MD, Dussault G, Fronteira I. Human resources for health (and rehabilitation): six rehab-workforce challenges for the century. Hum Resour Health. (2017) 15(8). 10.1186/s12960-017-0182-7 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
1. WHO. Fact Sheets: Rehabilitation. Geneva: WHO; (2020). Available online at: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/rehabilitation
1. Cieza A, Causey K, Kamenov K, Hanson SW, Chatterji S, Vos T. Global estimates of the need for rehabilitation based on the global burden of disease study 2019: a systematic analysis for the global burden of disease study 2019. Lancet. (2020) 396:2006–17. 10.1016/S0140-6736(20)32340-0 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
1. Htwe O, Yuliawiratman BS, Tannor AY, Nor Asikin MZ, Soh E, Groote W DE, et al. Barriers and facilitators for increased accessibility to quality rehabilitation services in low- and middle- income countries: a systematic review. Eur J Phys Rehabil Med. (2024) 60:514–22. 10.23736/S1973-9087.24.08154-1 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
1. Boutayeb A. Handbook of Disease Burdens and Quality of Life Measures. New York, NY: Springer; (2010). p. 531–46. 10.1007/978-0-387-78665-0_32 - DOI

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[1] Jesus TS, Landry MD, Dussault G, Fronteira I. Human resources for health (and rehabilitation): six rehab-workforce challenges for the century. Hum Resour Health. (2017) 15(8). 10.1186/s12960-017-0182-7 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[2] Jesus TS, Landry MD, Dussault G, Fronteira I. Human resources for health (and rehabilitation): six rehab-workforce challenges for the century. Hum Resour Health. (2017) 15(8). 10.1186/s12960-017-0182-7 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[3] WHO. Fact Sheets: Rehabilitation. Geneva: WHO; (2020). Available online at: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/rehabilitation

[4] WHO. Fact Sheets: Rehabilitation. Geneva: WHO; (2020). Available online at: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/rehabilitation

[5] Cieza A, Causey K, Kamenov K, Hanson SW, Chatterji S, Vos T. Global estimates of the need for rehabilitation based on the global burden of disease study 2019: a systematic analysis for the global burden of disease study 2019. Lancet. (2020) 396:2006–17. 10.1016/S0140-6736(20)32340-0 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[6] Cieza A, Causey K, Kamenov K, Hanson SW, Chatterji S, Vos T. Global estimates of the need for rehabilitation based on the global burden of disease study 2019: a systematic analysis for the global burden of disease study 2019. Lancet. (2020) 396:2006–17. 10.1016/S0140-6736(20)32340-0 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[7] Htwe O, Yuliawiratman BS, Tannor AY, Nor Asikin MZ, Soh E, Groote W DE, et al. Barriers and facilitators for increased accessibility to quality rehabilitation services in low- and middle- income countries: a systematic review. Eur J Phys Rehabil Med. (2024) 60:514–22. 10.23736/S1973-9087.24.08154-1 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[8] Htwe O, Yuliawiratman BS, Tannor AY, Nor Asikin MZ, Soh E, Groote W DE, et al. Barriers and facilitators for increased accessibility to quality rehabilitation services in low- and middle- income countries: a systematic review. Eur J Phys Rehabil Med. (2024) 60:514–22. 10.23736/S1973-9087.24.08154-1 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[9] Boutayeb A. Handbook of Disease Burdens and Quality of Life Measures. New York, NY: Springer; (2010). p. 531–46. 10.1007/978-0-387-78665-0_32 - DOI

[10] Boutayeb A. Handbook of Disease Burdens and Quality of Life Measures. New York, NY: Springer; (2010). p. 531–46. 10.1007/978-0-387-78665-0_32 - DOI

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Unlocking the potential of serious games for rehabilitation in low and middle-income countries: addressing potential and current limitations

Affiliations

Unlocking the potential of serious games for rehabilitation in low and middle-income countries: addressing potential and current limitations

Authors

Affiliations

Conflict of interest statement

Figures

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References

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