Commentary: Remote assessments of gait and balance - Implications for research during and beyond Covid-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted non-essential in-person research activities that require contact with human subjects. While guidelines are being developed for ramping up human subjects research, one component of research that can be performed remotely is participant screening for lower limb function and gait impairments. In this commentary, we summarize evidence-supported clinical assessments that have potential to be conducted remotely in a safe manner, to make an initial determination of the functional mobility status of persons with neurological disorders. We present assessments that do not require complex or costly equipment, specialized software, or trained personnel to administer. We provide recommendations to implement remote functional assessments for participant recruitment and continuation of lower limb neurorehabilitation research as a rapid response to the COVID-19 pandemic and for utilization beyond the current pandemic. We also highlight critical research gaps related to feasibility and measurement characteristics of remote lower limb assessments, providing opportunities for future research to advance tele-assessment and tele-rehabilitation.

COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond: Considerations and Costs of Telehealth Exercise Programs for Older Adults With Functional Impairments Living at Home-Lessons Learned From a Pilot Case Study.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to describe the process and cost of delivering a physical therapist-guided synchronous telehealth exercise program appropriate for older adults with functional limitations. Such programs may help alleviate some of the detrimental impacts of social distancing and quarantine on older adults at-risk of decline. METHODS: Data were derived from the feasibility arm of a parent study, which piloted the telehealth program for 36 sessions with 1 participant. The steps involved in each phase (ie, development, delivery) were documented, along with participant and program provider considerations for each step. Time-driven activity-based costing was used to track all costs over the course of the study. Costs were categorized as program development or delivery and estimated per session and per participant. RESULTS: A list of the steps and the participant and provider considerations involved in developing and delivering a synchronous telehealth exercise program for older adults with functional impairments was developed. Resources used, fixed and variable costs, per-session cost estimates, and total cost per person were reported. Two potential measures of the "value proposition" of this type of intervention were also reported. Per-session cost of $158 appeared to be a feasible business case, especially if the physical therapist to trained assistant personnel mix could be improved. CONCLUSIONS: The findings provide insight into the process and costs of developing and delivering telehealth exercise programs for older adults with functional impairments. The information presented may provide a "blue print" for developing and implementing new telehealth programs or for transitioning in-person services to telehealth delivery during periods of social distancing and quarantine. IMPACT: As movement experts, physical therapists are uniquely positioned to play an important role in the current COVID-19 pandemic and to help individuals who are at risk of functional decline during periods of social distancing and quarantine. Lessons learned from this study's experience can provide guidance on the process and cost of developing and delivering a telehealth exercise program for older adults with functional impairments. The findings also can inform new telehealth programs, as well as assist in transitioning in-person care to a telehealth format in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.