Healthcare practitioners and robotic-assisted rehabilitation: understanding needs and barriers

Abstract

Backgrounds: In recent years, numerous robotic devices, together with allied technologies, have been developed to support rehabilitation, both in research settings and industry. Although robotic-assisted rehabilitation and related technologies hold significant promise for supporting healthcare practitioners and enhancing patient care, their use in clinical practice remains limited. One of the motivations could be that final users' needs have not been given due consideration so far. As a matter of fact, understanding user needs and perceptions is crucial for designing these technological devices and for creating new organizational models within hospitals aiming to establish and maintain robotics-assisted rehabilitation gyms.

Methods: We developed and distributed an online survey to the Italian community of healthcare practitioners working in rehabilitation, to depict the current landscape of robotic-assisted rehabilitation and to understand their opinions and demands across various domains and diseases. The questionnaire is divided into two main parts. The first section pertains to the respondents' demographics and professional experience. The second part includes questions about eight different categories of rehabilitative devices. For each category, practitioners can indicate whether they use a device in their practice, their perceptions, and any perceived barriers. Additionally, they can fill out a System Usability Scale for a specific device in that category.

Results: We collected answers from 423 Italian rehabilitation professionals, including various clinical roles, that revealed significant insights into the use of robotics in rehabilitation. Gender distribution shows a high prevalence of female professionals. 40% of respondents reported being unfamiliar with any robotics devices. Advanced treadmills are the most known and used robots. Generally, usage and experience with devices are associated with positive attitudes towards robotics-assisted rehabilitation. Lack of financial resources and scientific evidence, as well as lack of opportunities and training, are the most reported barriers.

Conclusions: Despite a general positivity towards technology, there is a substantial lack of awareness about rehabilitation devices among professionals. The survey highlights the need for enhanced training and education on robotics in rehabilitation programs. Additionally, the limited focus on home rehabilitation is noted. The study emphasizes the importance of verifying both the effectiveness and economic sustainability of robotic devices in clinical practice.

Keywords: Questionnaire; Robots; SUS; Survey; Technology adoption; User needs.

Fig. 1

Structure of the survey: after a general introductory part, where healthcare professionals are asked questions related to their age, gender, and working experience, three sets of questions are asked for each device category. The first set of questions is related to the attitude to use and the appreciation (A). The second set of questions pertains to the barriers listed in B. The third set of questions is drawn from the System Usability Scale (C)

Fig. 2

Percentage of respondents for each profession

Fig. 3

Working settings of the respondents

Fig. 4

Heatmap showing, for each professional type, the percentage of answers that indicate to work with a specific clinical picture

Fig. 5

Histogram showing the percentage of device users agreeing with each statement on their attitude and appreciation for the device (left pane) and percentage of answers “I agree” among respondents that do not use the device (right pane)