Preparatory Check to Assess Equipment and Participant Comfort Prior to a Televisit in Huntington’s Disease
Samuel Frank1, John Stone2, Jason Kimmerly2, Elise Kayson3, Jody Goldstein3, Peggy Auinger2
1Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard Medical School, 2Center for Health and Technology, University of Rochester Medical Center, 3Huntington Study Group
Objective:
To describe a remote technology check (RTC) prior to a televisit in a study assessing the virtual Unified Huntington’s Disease Rating Scale (vUHDRS®) in participants with motor-manifest Huntington’s disease (HD).
Background:
The COVID-19 pandemic brought an increased need for remote assessments.  Information is needed on readiness, comfort, and satisfaction of participants and sites for televisits in HD studies.  Protocols for an RTC prior to a televisit have not been established and have not been described in HD.
Design/Methods:
Sixty individuals with HD from 16 U.S. sites enrolled in an observational study, involving two in-person visits, one RTC, and one televisit.  The purpose of the RTC was to verify internet connection and ensure adequate equipment and set-up for the televisit.  Participants were initially assigned personal or study-provided technology determined at screening.  A technician assessed participant comfort with the RTC process (1-10 scale) and participant and site surveys evaluated satisfaction after the televisit and administration of remote assessments.
Results:
All participants completed the RTC and televisit.  The technician determined inadequate initially assigned equipment for four participants due to poor internet connectivity or camera quality. Once corrected, the participants were able to complete the televisit using suitable equipment.  83% of participants rated their comfort during the RTC visit as ten.  Participants and sites were satisfied/very satisfied with the technical quality of the televisit (98% and 83% respectively).
Conclusions:
The RTC was feasible for a small study and participants were comfortable with the technology.  Satisfaction with televisits was favorable for participants and site staff.  This study supports the use of an RTC to confirm participant readiness for the televisit and suggests that technology per se was not a significant barrier for participants or research sites.  Further evaluation on a larger scale, with less technology savvy participants, and in other neurological disorders is warranted.
10.1212/WNL.0000000000206023