Investigating the gap between evidence and practice in the use of virtual reality for physical rehabilitation – is VR just a fancy toy?
- UNCG Author/Contributor (non-UNCG co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
- Danielle Tomeck Felsberg (Creator)
- Institution
- The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG )
- Web Site: http://library.uncg.edu/
- Advisor
- Christopher Rhea
Abstract: Physical rehabilitation aims to address functional deficits, restore healthy movement patterns, and optimize independence following dysfunction caused by aging, injury, or disease. Virtual reality (VR) has been shown to be a promising tool to create interventions to improve motor outcomes, however, there appears to be a gap between scientific evidence and clinical practice. The purpose of this dissertation was to three-fold: (1) to identify the degree to which VR research for physical rehabilitation is being translated out of laboratories through studies performed in clinical settings; (2) to identify the acceptance, adoption, and perceived barriers to use of VR in rehabilitation by those practicing physical therapy across the profession spectrum (physical therapists (PTs), physical therapist assistants (PTAs), and students of both programs); and (3) to identify the perceptions and intention to use VR in rehabilitation by patients who have or are currently receiving physical rehabilitation. Aim 1 used a systematic review to investigate the current state of VR research for physical rehabilitation from 2010 to present. The review included 88 articles. The findings of this review indicated that most VR research for physical rehabilitation is being performed in clinical settings; primarily inpatient settings such as hospitals and outpatient clinics. Additionally, most studies reported significant improvements in their outcome variables following VR intervention. Aims 2 and 3 investigated the views of clinical use of VR by physical rehabilitation professionals/students (Aim 2) and patients (Aim 3) via the (ADOPT-VR2) survey. For Aim 2, A total of 626 clinicians and 91 students completed all portions of the survey. As expected, a small percentage of respondents reported using VR in clinical practice. All ADOPT-VR2 constructs are significant predictors of behavioral intention to use VR. Interestingly, students have significantly higher positive attitudes toward use of VR than clinicians, including behavioral intentions to use VR in clinical practice. For Aim 3, a total of 38 current or former patients completed all portions of the survey. None of the participants reported receiving interventions that included VR during their PT experience, however 60.5% of respondents reported they would request VR interventions if available and 71.1% of respondents reported they would prefer providers that utilize VR interventions. Only the ADOPT-VR constructs of attitudes, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and compatibility were found to be predictive of intention. Additionally, patients’ behavioral intention to use VR appears to be independent of external factors including age, socioeconomic status, experience with VR, and educational level, as these were not found to be significant predictors of intention in this population. Thus, clinics should be cautious when determining if their clients would be interested or appropriate for VR interventions based on one of these factors. These findings illuminate the current state of the research and clinical use of VR interventions to improve motor outcomes. VR research has evolved out of labs and into clinical settings, and the results continue to support the efficacy of VR as an intervention. However, a gap does exist as clinicians are largely not utilizing VR as a treatment modality despite patients’ acceptance and positive intentions to participate in VR interventions. Findings regarding student’s positive attitudes and intentions toward VR use are promising, as this suggests that there is potential for a shift in clinical VR usage patterns as these students become autonomous, licensed clinicians.
Investigating the gap between evidence and practice in the use of virtual reality for physical rehabilitation – is VR just a fancy toy?
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Created on 12/1/2021
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Additional Information
- Publication
- Dissertation
- Language: English
- Date: 2021
- Keywords
- Motor Behavior, Technology in Rehabilitation, Virtual Reality
- Subjects
- Virtual reality in medicine
- Virtual reality $x Health aspects
- Physical therapy