Phase I Evaluation of the Television Assisted Prompting System to Increase Completion of Home Exercises Among Stroke Survivors
By Lemoncello, Rik; Sohlberg, McKay Moore; Fickas, Stephen; Albin, Richard; Harn, Beth E.; Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology, Volume 6, Number 5, pages 440-452Publication Date: September 2011
Phase I study evaluated the effects of a novel television assisted system that delivers intensive in-home therapy prompts to individuals with dysphagia following stroke. The Television Assisted Prompting (TAP) system delivers swallow exercise video instructions, including reminders to initiate exercises and specific instructions and modeling to complete exercises with correct technique, at specified times on the person’s home television with a simple user interface. A within-participant alternating treatment design with random assignment of treatment condition compared exercise program adherence across TAP and typical practice delivery conditions, replicated across 3 male participants with dysphagia aged 62, 77, and 86 years. Data collected included quantitative program completion rates, satisfaction survey reports, and caregiver burden questionnaire results, as well as qualitative interview findings. A large treatment effect was demonstrated for the 62-year-old and the 77-year-old participant; exercise program completion rates increased by 6 to 17 times typical practice levels with the TAP system. TAP supported sustained practice over the course of the experiment for the 86-year-old participant despite minimal differences between conditions. Participants reported high satisfaction and endorsed the TAP system. There was no significant change in caregiver burden. Study limitations and future directions in the development of the TAP system are discussed.
Published by: Taylor & Francis, Limited (Website:http://taylorandfrancis.org)
International Society of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine (Web Site: http://www.isprm.org )
