Remote Delivery of the Fugl-Meyer Assessment for the Upper Extremity: A Pilot Study to Assess Feasibility, Reliability, and Validity

Objective: To develop a remote protocol for the upper extremity Fugl-Meyer Assessment (reFMA) and assess the reliability and validity with in-person delivery. Design: Feasibility testing. Setting: Remote/virtual and in-person in participants’ homes. Participants: Three triads of therapists, stroke survivors, and carepartners (N=9) participated in Phases 1 and 2. Twelve different stroke survivors participated in Phase 3. Intervention: The FMA was administered and received remotely using the instructional protocol (Phases 1 and 2). Pilot testing with the delivery of the reFMA remotely and the FMA in-person occurred in Phase 3. Main Outcome Measures: Feedback for refinement and feasibility of obtaining the reFMA (including the System Usability Scale) and the FMA scores remotely and in-person to assess reliability and validity of the reFMA. Results: The reFMA was refined to incorporate feedback and suggestions from users. Interrater reliability between 2 therapists evaluating the FMA remotely was found to be poor with little agreement. For criterion validity, only 1 out of 12 (8.3%) total scores were in agreement between the in-person and remote assessments. Conclusion: Reliable and valid remote administration of the FMA is an important aspect of telerehabilitation for the upper extremity after stroke, but further research is needed to address current protocol limitations. This study provides preliminary support for the need for alternative strategies to improve appropriate implementation of the FMA remotely. Possible explanations for the poor reliability are explored and suggestions for improvement of the remote delivery of the FMA are provided