Telemedicine-Driven Assistive Technology Solutions: Bridging Digital Care and Remote Service Delivery

Abstract There is a vast need of assistive technology (AT) among more than huge population segment of the global population that are in need of at least one assistive product, yet merely one in ten people has access to the life-changing devices. Telemedicine provides a revolution towards closing this global AT gap, especially in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) where service delivery obstacles are the highest. This article discusses how telemedicine can be used in the provision of AT with a focus on the potential to improve the assessment, prescription, training, and follow-up care. Using WHO frameworks, empirical data, and implementation science, the review illustrates that AT services provided through telemedicine can help to reduce costs, increase geographic access, reduce user satisfaction, and encourage equitable application of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD). By combining telemedicine with new technologies such as artificial intelligence, wearable sensors, virtual and augmented reality, and electromyography-based technology, there are possibilities to offer personalized AT delivery and real-time monitoring. These multimodal solutions aid distance evaluation, anticipatory examination to lessen the discontinuation of instruments, and constant tracking of results at the community level. Hybrid models of delivery that use a combination of both synchronous videoconferencing and asynchronous mobile health tools create flexible structures of service that can be changed to suit various contexts of resources. Such issues as the rural-urban gaps in infrastructure, insufficiency of rehabilitation personnel, and the changing regulatory stipulations under the National Digital Health Mission continue to be a challenge in India. Nonetheless, robust digital health, mobile connectivity, and the advancements towards universal health coverage place India in a good position in terms of scalable, rights-based telemedicine-AT application.