The Active Involvement of Parents in Habilitative Interventions Using Tele-Rehabilitation during the Covid-19 Emergency
Valentina Minelli, Grazia Lombardi, Paolo Lucattini
During the period of the COVID-19 emergency, we witnessed a total and sudden change in life and work habits. In a very short time, each professional category had to reorganize its activities in light of the anti-contagion rules, which included a lockdown period and then a slow reopening, with rules of social distancing that to date still prevent normal resumption of activities. In the context of speech therapy, among others, this required experimentation with new methodological approaches that would take into account the needs of children and their families, to ensure safety while continuing the interventions undertaken. This article focuses on experiences of synergy born out of distance, between the domestic context and the rehabilitation context, in particular through intervention that is mediated by parents. This type of intervention envisages the active involvement of the family, who, in addition to acquiring specific skills, has the possibility of applying these in everyday life, making rehabilitative action seamless and intensive. This active participation of the parent, beyond the emergency period we have experienced, is a long-established practice in the psycho-educational area and is widely described in scientific literature. The encouraging results observed during this time, together with positive feedback from the parents have highlighted how this approach can also be enhanced and re-evaluated in the practice of speech therapy, thanks to a greater use of technologies, which have turned out to be a thus far underutilized resource.
Keywords
Tele-rehabilitation, Tele-practice, Parent training, Covid-19, Speech-language pathology, Disability, Speech and language therapy.