Analysis of needs and requirements of kinesiotherapists in Poland for robot design purposes

The presented paper addresses the problem of defining the design intent for rehabilitation robots. The presented investigation consists of in-depth interviews with professional physiotherapists and questionnaire research involving a survey based on their responses. Twenty-four questions were blocked within four sections – personal questions, therapy process, difficulties during sessions, and future of the rehabilitation. The answers were gathered online from a group of 138 active Polish physiotherapists. They were interpreted to identify actual needs and requirements regarding conventional therapy to be provided with the robotic aid. Analysis of results proves that future motor rehabilitation is expected to focus on task-oriented treatment and accurate assessment of progress. Moreover, this supports that implementing robots and teleinformatics technologies into kinesiotherapy may solve problems such as losing patients’ motivation, the physical tiredness of therapists, or spending time commuting for home rehabilitation. The results can be interpreted for the Polish market and those with a similar economy and cultural code.

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Opracowanie rekordu ze środków MEiN, umowa nr SONP/SP/546092/2022 w ramach programu "Społeczna odpowiedzialność nauki" - moduł: Popularyzacja nauki i promocja sportu (2024).