Telerehabilitation is helping children fitted with cochlear implants to improve their language skills, thanks in part to improved parental involvement, according to an ongoing study by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh.
The team used a software program that they developed to connect patients and parents with speech language pathologists. The program also gave parents with the opportunity to remotely view and learn from therapy delivered to the child at school.
The types of strategies needed to help these children develop skills in listening and spoken language (LSL) are not intuitive for parents with normal hearing, according to lead author Andi Saptono, assistant professor of health and rehabilitation informatics at Pitt. Plus, there’s a shortage of therapists who can provide this training, requiring parents and their children to travel to specific sites for training, potentially limiting the amount of training that both the children and parents can receive.
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Saptono reported on two families who participated in a 12-month pilot program. Prior to each telerehabilitation session, the LSL therapist emailed parents lesson plans and education materials. A typical session started with a review of events from any past session and plans to solve any identified problem issues. Sessions mainly consisted of parent-directed activities with the LSL specialist participating only when required. A usability questionnaire measured the perceived effectiveness and satisfaction of telerehabilitation as a platform to deliver the service.
Based on an analysis from sound samples and standardized assessments, the children showed progress with their speech and language goals, the pilot showed. Parents said that they felt empowered to actively participate in the training and confident to continue the interaction and language training for their children on their own.
Parents also said they felt comfortable with telerehabilitation and were able to interact with the clinician without any difficulties or reservations.
The researchers’ software program, VISYTER, is only available for research purposes, but has been licensed to a Pittsburgh company for commercialization, according to Saptono. It is being tested in several telerehabilitation studies, he added.
