The COVID-19 pandemic brought many changes and challenges to health professionals, due to a lack of knowledge when dealing with the disease, fear of contagion, and the sequelae that characterize long COVID. To deal with this situation, respiratory rehabilitation programs are recommended in face-to-face and/or telerehabilitation modalities. (1) Background: This study had as its primary aim identifying the aspects/components to be considered in the planning and implementation of telerehabilitation interventions that guarantee transitional care for people with long COVID-19 after hospitalization and as a secondary aim identifying the positive aspects of telerehabilitation. (2) Methods: The method used to answer the research question was a focus group, carried out online with eight nurses specialized in rehabilitation nursing. The answers to the semi-structured interview were subjected to content analysis, and qualitative data analysis software (WebQDA^®) was used to organize and analyze the findings. (3) Results: Four categories emerged from the content analysis: coordination between care levels; transitional care telerehabilitation intervention; advantages of telerehabilitation; and opportunities. (4) Conclusions: These findings make an important contribution to the reorganization of transitional care, allowing the identification of central aspects to be considered in the planning and implementation of telerehabilitation programs for people with long COVID.

SARS-CoV-2 infection and its resulting sequelae have increased the prevalence of people with respiratory symptoms, with impacts on functional capacity, quality of life, anxiety, depression, and mental health. To mitigate this problem, one challenge has been the design and implementation of interventions that simultaneously allow for education, rehabilitation, and monitoring of people with long COVID, at a time when health services were on the verge of rupture due to the volume of people with active COVID and in need of intensive care. Telerehabilitation emerged as a mode for providing rehabilitative care that brought professionals closer to patients and enabled continuity of care. The present study aimed to evaluate the results of a telerehabilitation intervention for people with injuries associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection in hospital-community transitions, considering their degree of dependence in performing activities of daily living, respiratory symptoms, fatigue, gait capacity, muscle strength, and experience with anxiety and depression. A pre-post study with a non-equivalent control group was carried out with a total of 49 participants (intervention group n = 24; control group n = 25). The post-intervention results showed an increase in saturation, a decrease in heart rate, an improvement in the impact of post-COVID functionality, a decrease in fatigue, a decrease in perceived effort, and a decrease in depressive and anxiety symptoms. The telerehabilitation intervention, which combined educational strategies with respiratory and motor rehabilitation, helped improve global functionality and self-care, with clinical and functional impacts.

The rise of telehealth in geriatric care is an inexorable movement toward adapting to global digitalization trends, in terms of both technology and implementation experiences, with clear gains for health systems and citizens. A literature review shows that the older population, with lower levels of digital literacy, faces specific challenges with this type of service. The aim of this study was to understand the way older people with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease or long COVID perceive the implementation of telerehabilitation programs to meet their healthcare needs. A qualitative study was conducted using semi-structured interviews to answer the research question: How do older people perceive telerehabilitation programs? The study participants were 17 people aged ≥ 65 years old who had completed a respiratory telerehabilitation program at a Portuguese hospital. The interviews were submitted to content analysis using WebQDA® qualitative data analysis software. The study participants had an average age of 70.94 ± 7.44 years old. The content of the interviews with these older people points to easy adaptation to the telerehabilitation program. Three categories and their respectives subcategories emerged from the content analysis: (1) access and continuity of care (access, continuity of care, and self-management); (2) presence (communication with the team and maintaining relationships); and (3) experience in the program (comfort, advantages, and difficulties). This study allows for an understanding of how older people perceive participation in telerehabilitation programs, what they value, and the difficulties they experience. It makes it possible to make recommendations for clinic practice and research into this emerging area of health care.

Background: Simplified field tests have gained increasing interest for the assessment of functional capacity in patients with post-COVID-19 condition; however, direct comparisons of functional performance and physiological responses between the 1-min sit-to-stand test (1MSTST) and the 6-min walk test (6MWT) remain limited. This study aimed to examine the associations between the two tests by evaluating functional performance, cardiopulmonary responses, oxygen desaturation, perceived exertion, and peripheral muscle strength. Furthermore, we explored whether the 1MSTST can be used as a complementary assessment, particularly within telerehabilitation pathways and in contexts where resource-intensive testing is not feasible. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional observational study of adults recovering from moderate to severe COVID-19 between May and July 2021. Participants performed both the 1MSTST and 6MWT on the same day. Functional performance, peak heart rate, nadir peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO₂), perceived exertion, and handgrip dynamometry were recorded. Associations between test performances were assessed using correlation and partial correlation analyses, including adjustment for peripheral muscle strength. Results: Fifty-four patients were included. A moderate correlation was observed between 1MSTST repetitions and 6MWT distance (Spearman’s ρ = 0.47, p < 0.001), which was attenuated after adjustment for muscle strength and demographic variables. Peak heart rate and nadir SpO₂ responses were strongly correlated between tests (r = 0.75 and ρ = 0.83, respectively; both p < 0.001), with no significant differences in magnitude. Exercise-induced oxygen desaturation (≥4% SpO₂ drop) occurred at similar frequencies during both tests. Perceived exertion increased similarly following the 1MSTST and the 6MWT. Conclusions: In post-COVID-19 patients, the 1 min sit-to-stand test shows moderate concordance with the 6 min walk test for functional performance and strong agreement in cardiopulmonary responses. These findings suggest that the two tests assess overlapping but distinct aspects of functional capacity. This supports the use of the 1MSTST as a pragmatic complementary assessment when standard walking tests are not feasible, particularly within telerehabilitation pathways, primary care, and resource-limited settings.