Grant recipient: Anita Plaza APAM 

Project title: Evaluating the effectiveness of a Home-Based Telehealth rehabilitation model for the delivery of physiotherapy exercise programs following burns injury – a randomised controlled trial.

Year awarded: 2020

Grant: Seeding Grant

Grant amount: $10,000

Snapshot: In exploration of the barriers affecting burn victims’ access to rehabilitation services, Anita Plaza APAM conducted a first of its kind randomised controlled trial to compare telehealth-delivered physiotherapy exercise programs to in-person delivery. The telehealth study focused on adult patients with smaller burns affecting up to 25 per cent of their total body surface area. 

The findings: There were no significant differences within or between groups for any of the outcome measures except range of motion. Non-inferiority of telehealth delivery was inconclusive due to the low number of patients enrolled in the trial. 

Benefits to the profession: Telerehabilitation appears to be a safe, effective and viable clinical option for physiotherapy management of patients with burn injuries.

Read about the findings of Anita’s study in InMotion and view the PRF-funded research translation.