Objective: A major challenge faced by regional Japan Disaster Rehabilitation Assistance Team (JRAT) is the development of a skilled rehabilitation workforce. To identify key barriers to enhancing future disaster response engagement, we conducted a questionnaire survey targeting rehabilitation therapists.

Methods: Participants included rehabilitation professionals affiliated with therapist associations in Wakayama Prefecture. Survey items covered demographic characteristics, awareness of JRAT, willingness to participate in disaster rehabilitation activities during the 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake, and intentions regarding future disaster response involvement.

Results: A total of 308 valid responses were obtained. Awareness of JRAT activities during non-disaster periods was substantially lower compared to awareness during active disaster response. During the 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake, 34.3% of respondents (n=106) indicated a positive intention to participate in JRAT activities, selecting either “wanted to participate” or “somewhat wanted to participate,” demonstrating that over one-third expressed a willingness to engage in disaster support efforts. Regarding the reasons for not participating or for lacking the intention to participate, the most frequently cited barriers were “work-related obligations” and “family-related circumstances,” both of which ranked among the top two in both categories. More than 40% of respondents were willing to participate in JRAT activities, and this pattern held for disasters occurring both within and outside the prefecture. No statistically significant differences in the intent to participate were detected across occupational categories.

Conclusion: Although many rehabilitation therapists expressed a positive intention to participate in disaster rehabilitation, this intention was not sufficiently reflected in actual engagement in support activities.

Purpose: This study evaluated electrical impedance tomography (EIT) as an assessment tool for optimizing respiratory physiotherapy interventions in a child with severe motor and intellectual disabilities (SMID) and severe scoliosis, specifically targeting atelectasis and ventilation distribution.

Methods: EIT is a noninvasive bedside lung imaging technique, which monitors real-time regional distribution of ventilation and perfusion. We used EIT to assess ventilation changes during different positioning maneuvers such as latreral recumbent, prone, head-up, sitting positions, as well as during thoracic range of motion exercises. Based on these EIT assessments, respiratory physiotherapy interventions (thoracic range of motion, squeezing and postural drainage) were then tailored for improvement of the collapse of the lung.

Results: The findings revealed that spine positioning and left lateral recumbent position demonstrated poor ventilation of left lung. On the contrary, prone position or the right lateral decubitus position significantly improved left lung aeration. The most substantial improvement occurred when maintaining a right lateral recumbent position with 30-degree head elevation for two hours, combined with thoracic range of motion exercises.

Discussion: EIT holds promise as a bedside tool for real-time quantitative evaluation of respiratory physiotherapy effectiveness in children with SMID and scoliosis by providing immediate insights into pulmonary ventilation distribution.