Impact of Functional Rehabilitation on Digital Independence: Validation of a Novel Smartphone Use Score as an Indicator of Discharge Readiness in Medical Care and Rehabilitation.

Patients' independence in Medical Care and Rehabilitation (SMR) settings is typically assessed using functional scales such as the Barthel Index. However, these tools give little consideration to digital skills, which have become essential in everyday life (communication, access to healthcare, information seeking, and administrative procedures). The Digital Skills Score ("Score d'Habileté Numérique", TSHN-SMR) was developed to provide a simple and standardized assessment of a patient's ability to use a smartphone through several common tasks that simultaneously involve cognitive and motor functions. This study aims to determine whether digital skills constitute a relevant and ecologically valid indicator of functional independence in rehabilitation patients. Ultimately, the TSHN-SMR could complement traditional assessment tools by providing a measure that more closely reflects activities actually performed in daily life within an increasingly digital environment.

Inclusion Criteria: * Reason for admission: Any patient admitted to an SMR unit for a neurological condition (e.g., stroke or mild traumatic brain injury) or an orthopedic condition (e.g., joint replacement or fall-related injury) requiring functional rehabilitation. * Ownership of a smartphone for at least 6 months prior to admission, to ensure that the assessment measures the recovery of previously acquired digital skills rather than the learning of a new device. Exclusion Criteria: * Major sensory impairment: Blindness or profound untreated hearing loss that makes smartphone use impossible. * Pre-existing motor impairment: Advanced Parkinson's disease or severe digital osteoarthritis (deforming stage) that could bias the assessment of acute functional recovery. * Cognitive impairment: Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score \< 20/30, as a score below 20 may indicate that the patient is unable to understand the simple instructions required to complete the test. * Language barrier: Inability to understand instructions in French, unless the smartphone is configured in the patient's native language.