Organization of Remote Rehabilitation in the Russian Federation: a Literature Review

Abstract

INTRODUCTION. The interruption of the recovery process and the absence of patients’ activities at home after discharge from a medical institution leads to the loss of results achieved at various stages of medical rehabilitation. In this regard, the remote (telemedicine) form of rehabilitation assistance is of particular importance. AIM. To present up-to-date data on the legal and regulatory framework for telemedicine in the Russian Federation, as well as an overview of domestic Internet platforms in the field of remote medical rehabilitation. MATERIALS AND METHODS. The search for normative legal acts was carried out on the “The official Internet portal of Legal Information” (www.pravo.gov.ru). The literature review was performed using the databases eLibrary, Cyberleninka, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science (Core Collection) and Google Scholar by July 31, 2023 for the following keywords: telemedicine, remote physical rehabilitation, medical rehabilitation, functional recovery. RESULTS. The article elaborates on the legal and regulatory framework of telemedicine in the Russian Federation, provides a list of domestic Internet portals that are now being employed to provide remote medical care. CONCLUSION. The remote form of arranging rehabilitation is supported by the regulatory and legal framework and has promising outlooks for development due to the advent of new information technologies that allow for active communication between a medical worker and a patient. Nevertheless, the issues of effectiveness and safety of remote physical rehabilitation remain insufficiently studied, therefore, it is necessary to conduct randomized comparative studies analyzing long-term results.