Research interrupted: The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on multiple sclerosis research in the field of rehabilitation and quality of life

Rebecca Maguire; Sinead Hynes; Barbara Seebacher; Valerie J Block; Kathy M Zackowski; Johanna Jonsdottir; Marcia Finlayson; Prue Plummer; Jennifer Freeman; Barbara Giesser; Gloria von Geldern; Michelle Ploughman

doi:10.1177/20552173211038030

Research interrupted: The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on multiple sclerosis research in the field of rehabilitation and quality of life

Mult Scler J Exp Transl Clin. 2021 Aug 26;7(3):20552173211038030. doi: 10.1177/20552173211038030. eCollection 2021 Jul-Sep.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology, Maynooth University, County Kildare, Ireland.
² School of Health Sciences, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland.
³ Clinical Department of Neurology, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria.
⁴ Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA.
⁵ Patient Management Care and Rehabilitation Research, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, New York, USA.
⁶ IRCCS Fondazione Don Carlo Gnocchi, Milan, Italy.
⁷ School of Rehabilitation Therapy, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada.
⁸ Department of Physical Therapy, MGH Institute of Health Professions, MGH Institute of Health Professions, Boston, MA, USA.
⁹ School of Health Professions, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, UK.
¹⁰ Staff Physician, Pacific Neuroscience Institute, Santa Monica, CA, USA.
¹¹ Department of Neurology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
¹² Faculty of Medicine, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Labrador, Canada.

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has likely had a negative impact on rehabilitation and quality of life (QoL) research in multiple sclerosis (MS).

Method: We explored perceived barriers to research among 87 researchers, representing 18 countries, both prior to and since COVID-19.

Results: A Wilcoxon signed-rank test found that significantly more researchers reported experiencing barriers to research since the onset of the pandemic compared to pre-COVID-19 (p < .001), with 78% of respondents reporting at least some barriers since COVID-19. The most commonly-cited barriers related to participant access (n = 38) and interruptions/delays to projects (n = 19). Although no gender differences were found in the number of barriers reported, female respondents were more likely to cite time or competing demands as barriers to research. Females were also more likely to perceive being negatively impacted by the pandemic compared to other genders (p = .007).

Conclusions: Implications for the future landscape of rehabilitation research in MS are discussed.

Keywords: COVID-19; Multiple sclerosis; barriers to research; gender; quality of life; rehabilitation.