ibs.GRANADA researchers show that the telerehabilitation program @ctivehip improves the quality of life of people with hip fracture
This study highlights the importance of telerehabilitation as a complementary option within the public health system
The Rehabilita-T research group of the Biosanitary Research Institute of Granada (ibs.GRANADA) has shown that the @ctivehip telerehabilitation program offered through a website helps patients after a hip fracture to improve their functional level and physical condition, reduce levels of anxiety and depression, as well as increase their quality of life.
Hip fracture represents a serious current public health problem, especially in people over 65 years of age. Between 40% and 60% of older people who suffer a hip fracture do not recover their previous level of function, which implies the need for help from another person to carry out activities of daily living, such as shower or get dressed. In most cases, this help is provided by their relatives, who are overwhelmed by the new situation and the burden of care.
A good rehabilitation process is key to ensuring proper functional recovery, but it is often interrupted once the patient is discharged from hospital. That is why the Virgen de las Nieves University Hospital and ibs.GRANADA launched the @ctivehip telerehabilitation program, designed for patients with hip fractures and involving their informal caregivers (family members).
The @ctivehip program, which has been studied by this team of scientists from Granada, lasted 12 weeks, during which patients carried out occupational therapy and physical exercise sessions at home, which were administered through videos that could be consulted on the website. . In addition, they had a communication system through messages and video calls with health professionals to resolve doubts.
The results of the first version of this program have been published in the Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare, and have shown how ActiveHip+ helps improve the entire recovery process after hip fracture.
These results highlight the need to consider telerehabilitation as a new complementary treatment option within the public health system, and have led the European Institute of Innovation and Technology EIT Health to finance the development of a new version of the program through the project ActiveHip+, led by Dr. Patrocinio Ariza Vega, and which is currently being carried out at the AZ Delta Roselare Hospital in Leuven (Belgium) and at three hospitals of the Andalusian Health Service (Virgen de las Nieves University Hospital, Puerto Real, and Jerez de la Frontera Hospital).
The new ActiveHip+ includes a health education and telerehabilitation program for patients, and a specific section for their caregivers. More information about the contents of the program and the project is available at https://www.activehipplus.com/
About the research group
The Rehabilita-T research group at ibs.GRANADA, led by Dr. Rocío Pozuelo Calvo, is a multidisciplinary team whose lines of research are the functional evaluation of rehabilitation, telerehabilitation and socio-health care for caregivers and dependent patients.
More information about the group at https://www.ibsgranada.es/grupos-de-investigacion/tece20-rehabilita-t/
