Impact of COVID-19 outbreak on rehabilitation services and Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine physicians' activities in Italy. An official document of the Italian PRM Society (SIMFER)

Abstract

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A ‘new normal’ following COVID-19 and the economic crisis: Using systems thinking to identify challenges and opportunities in disability, telework, and rehabilitation

“…Rehabilitation services have been challenged by the pandemic. Within a short period of time, an increasing number of papers have been published which prepare the rehabilitation community for the organization and delivery of services during the COVID-19 outbreak [14,[50][51][52]. Challenges have been many, in addition to implementing measures for preventing the COVID-19 dissemination through patients and staff alike.…”

“…Challenges have been many, in addition to implementing measures for preventing the COVID-19 dissemination through patients and staff alike. Inpatient rehabilitation services have been pressured to admit patients from acute wards to release capacity for treating COVID-19 patients, sometimes with total conversion of rehabilitation-designed beds, wards and even hospitals in the places most hardly hit by the COVID-19, such as Italy [14,50].…”

“…Paradoxically, while need in some rehabilitation sectors have been highlighted (such as in patient respiratory physical therapy), other sectors have experienced a lowering of demand, particularly for outpatient or home-based rehabilitation. The differential impact of sub-sectors of rehabilitation industry has highlighted the need for rapidly developing and applying contingency plans to mediate these economic and practice pattern effects [14,15].…”

Traditional Chinese exercise for COVID-19

“…[ 5 – 7 ] The patient discharged from the hospital may still have symptoms such as fatigue, cough, poor mental state, and other symptoms after the nucleic acid turn negative. [ 8 – 10 ] The patients may have varying degrees of lung function damage, interstitial pneumonia changes, and even the possibility of pulmonary fibrosis, and the risk of re-infection is not excluded. [ 11 – 13 ] In order to effectively alleviate the symptoms, promote the recovery of the immune system and cardiopulmonary function, relieve anxiety, improve the patients’ physical and mental function, life quality, and comprehensive recovery of social participation, it's important to gradually shift the emphasis of clinical work to COVID-19 convalescence therapy, especially pulmonary rehabilitation.…”

Now, more than ever, our community is needed: spinal cord injury care during a global pandemic

“…Italy has been one of the countries worldwide confronted with the COVID-19 outbreak. The Italian PMR Society (SIFMER) has published recommendations to ensure appropriate interventions to persons in need of rehabilitation in acute care, inpatient rehabilitation care and outpatient and home-based rehabilitation services [4]. Koh and Hoenig recently published a paper on interventions to prevent spreading of the virus in the rehabilitation community [5].…”