Launched in February 2023, The TeleRehab SPOT online knowledge hub created by the School of Physical and Occupational Therapy (SPOT) at McGill University supports rehabilitation clinicians (occupational therapists (OT), physical therapists (PT) and speech-language pathologists (SLP)) in developing their practice in telerehabilitation by curating the most current, evidence-informed resources and making them easily accessible online.
The COVID-19 pandemic rapidly accelerated a pivot to the development of virtual, evidence-based resources to support the remote delivery of rehabilitation services. Given the resulting explosion of research, clinical tools, and procedures within the field, and an urgent need for clinicians to have swift accessibility to these resources, an online knowledge hub was created to provide access to evidence-informed digital tools and resources. Receiving funding from Health Canada through the Dialogue project* and the support of the SPOT clinical community, Professor Caroline Storr, OT, MBA, gathered an advisory group consisting of SPOT researchers and clinical managers from private and public rehabilitation settings. A small working group led by Professor Storr and a project coordinator worked with a Quebec website design firm to create the bilingual TeleRehab SPOT.
The resulting online knowledge hub is a database-driven website that features easy-to-use search functions located on both the overall site and under each main category. Clinicians can find over 300 resources including getting started in telerehabilitation kits, assessment tools, treatment ideas, best practices suited to remote service delivery, as well as information regarding professional development and professional networking opportunities. Resources are categorized into seven domains: cognition, neurology, musculoskeletal, communication, mental health, pain, and community. Visible icons clearly indicate the type of resource and, the available evidence behind it. The website content will be maintained and updated as new tools, research, and platforms emerge.
The TeleRehab SPOT online knowledge hub aims to serve rehabilitation knowledge users from remote and urban settings by providing clinicians with easy access to current virtual tools and resources in their original language of development. All rehabilitation clinicians can benefit from browsing the site on a regular basis and learning about the telerehabilitation resources available.
*This initiative is funded by Health Canada, and supported by Dialogue McGill at McGill University, under the Action Plan for Official Languages – 2018-2023: Investing in Our Future. The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the views of Health Canada, McGill University, and Dialogue McGill.
The TeleRehab SPOT website link
