Hi Readers, this is Meghan. I am a fourth-year UBCO student, majoring in Human Kinetics. I am passionate about the physiology of the body, movement and rehabilitation. Now, I know it’s been a while since we’ve had an update so here it is!
Since April, a lot has changed around here! First off – we won the AICE validate grant!!!!!!!!
The start date of this grant was July 1st, 2021, & the purpose of this grant is to allow us to continue to validate our model and to develop the idea of telerehab 2.0 as a potential business. This grant allows us to see over 240 more patients. This is beneficial in two ways: First, that we get to help more rural Albertans, gain access to the care that they need. Second, that we gather data from a clinically significant number of patients. Another accomplishment we’ve completed is the delivery of equipment to Crowsnest Pass, thanks to funding RhPAP (the Rural Health Professions Action Plan). They gave us funding to buy this equipment, which has allowed us to see more patients while we continue to develop and expand.
We have also been working extensively with Alberta Health Services to implement a pilot project that tests our protocols across ten AHS sites to see if it’s something they’ll be able to offer on an ongoing basis. We are currently operational at AHS sites in Pincher Creek, Jasper, Crowsnest Pass, and Peace River. This pilot project will broaden treatment options for patients and clients going forward, and revolutionize how people deal with injuries and rehab in rural communities.
Equipment delivery right now is extremely slow because of Covid-19, but we are so incredibly grateful for AHS’s continued involvement in making space for this project while still dealing with the ongoing crisis. It feels like the world is walking through an ever-revolving door right now, and the ability to be flexible, yet still meet the needs of patients and clinicians alike is a strength that our team admires in Alberta Health Services. We are also still doing some preliminary work (no spoilers yet!) on rotator cuff repair follow-up and spine assessments. We are analyzing how we can implement our resources into better understanding the physiology of the rotator cuff while offering injury repair and physiotherapy with the use of our product. We are also looking to expand to other provinces and territories to see if our work can be helpful there as well.
We have put in a grant to hopefully develop some Machine Learning-enhanced equipment to help people comprehend virtual assessments better. However, we cannot release further details until we are funded! So stay tuned for updates on our new program later this year / early next year.
Finally, we are still also looking for patients to run through our programs so if you are in a rural community and are interested in trying the program, reach out to your local practitioner to see if we are offering it in your area!
Overall we have been making incredible progress we had a very busy summer and we are so excited about the possibilities that the future holds. You’ll be seeing a few more updates from Meghan over the next few weeks so stay tuned and have a great week!