FOXcast OT: Constant Therapy App Review

Welcome to FOXcast. I’m your host Jimmy McKay. We bring in no stranger to the program. Chelsea LeRoy. Chelsea, welcome back to the show.

CHELSEA LEROY, MS, CCC, SLP: Thank you glad to be on it.

JIMMY MCKAY, PT, DPT: All right. We’re taking a look inside technology applications both computers and on your cell phones. It can be helpful as long as you know that things actually going to work. So we’re doing an app review today. And Chelsea what app are we looking at this afternoon?

CHELSEA LEROY, MS, CCC, SLP: We never look at the spaced retrieval therapy app by Constant Therapy.

JIMMY MCKAY, PT, DPT: All right. So in a recent episode of one of our podcasts we looked at the concept of space retrieval and this app was actually suggested and you use it in clinical practice right now.

CHELSEA LEROY, MS, CCC, SLP: Yes, I use it for multiple people throughout my day. They do a lot of cognition. There are a lot of dementia patients and I find it to be one of the most powerful tools that I have in my toolbox.

JIMMY MCKAY, PT, DPT: So perfect. All right so let’s go through it. Constant therapy really focusing on spaced retrieval. What systems what types of phones does it work on?

CHELSEA LEROY, MS, CCC, SLP: So it works on iPhone and Android and you can access through Amazon as well. Which is really nice. So if you have maybe an iPhone or Android you have a Google phone. I know my brother in law has that you can access it no matter what type of device you have.

JIMMY MCKAY, PT, DPT: Describe how you use it in clinical use?

CHELSEA LEROY, MS, CCC, SLP: In a session. When I’m working with someone you know we go through the beginning stages depending on where you might be introduced myself to tell them why I’m there. And we usually have established a bit of information that is really important for that patient and we really want to kind of sink that into their brain so it becomes a habit. They know it visually like the back of their hands without even thinking. So for I’m having open right now. So, for example, one person I’m working on the question where you keep your keys at home? So when going back to their apartment you know where do they put them. Because they’re notorious for losing their keys. And don’t want that to happen anymore because it’s expensive to replace them. So in the session. You know I use it at the very beginning. I hit my timer I hit so you asked the question after X amount of time. And then again and again and again over extended periods of time. And I really find that the method is beneficial and the app just makes space retrieval in general so much easier for us the clinician. So yeah I love this app.

JIMMY MCKAY, PT, DPT: That’s perfect. Yes. The goal really is that the space of time between you asking the question increases as long as the client can give a correct response.

CHELSEA LEROY, MS, CCC, SLP: Right. And the nice part about this spaced retrieval therapy app is. That you type in the question and then you have a checkmark and then you have the checkmark and set the timer. I use the standard protocol with 15 seconds, 30 seconds, one minute, two minutes, four minutes. It keeps doubling every time they get it correct. The nice part is that you also have that little if they get it wrong you go over the answer and then it automatically goes back to the interval that they were correct. So if they were doing really well-recalling information at two minutes and then they didn’t get it at that four-minute mark it goes back to that two minutes in time to re-establish is that the answer again. So very easy to use.

JIMMY MCKAY, PT, DPT: Yeah yeah. I mean you could do it with a stopwatch and a pen or a stopwatch in your notes app. You could write down somewhere but that’s the point and that’s what we’re talking about another episode where this app came up. You’ve got other things going on. Typically this isn’t the only thing that you’re working on it at one time so it actually does some of the thinking take some of the load off of you.

CHELSEA LEROY, MS, CCC, SLP: I was working on that problem before I came across this app. I actually saw someone posted about it on Facebook and I was like let’s check this thing out. So I’ve been using it for quite some time now. But I was running into the problem is that on our work laptop, you can click on the time and then will go through the seconds. And I was like OK this is pretty easy. But then after two minutes, four minutes, eight minutes. And I was losing track of what time we started in which completely negates the whole purpose of this therapy technique. So this keeps you on track you can look away because it dings when the time is up. From the time I got there just watching a stopwatch finger your attention is it 100 percent on that patient.

JIMMY MCKAY, PT, DPT: Keeps it really objective as well you know doubling that being able to repeat that from session to session with accuracy that makes it great.

CHELSEA LEROY, MS, CCC, SLP: Even if you’re off by like 30 seconds, it throws off the entire point of spaced retrieval. I find it keeps me on track as well as me being able to keep my patient on track.

JIMMY MCKAY, PT, DPT: All right let’s move on to user experience. You just talked about how you use it in clinical use but user experience sometimes things get the job done. But overall how’s it feel. Because it’s got to be easy and quick for you.

CHELSEA LEROY, MS, CCC, SLP: It is. I mean you can save the question. You can plan ahead of time. I’m going to work on the so and so. You can do that the night before or the morning of. You have your question already in there. You can open the app right away and your questions just pop up. So ready to go. Don’t look around or force anything. So as far as that goes it’s really really nice. It’s really easy because it’s just a simple yes they got it correct or no they didn’t. Keeps everything on track for you.

JIMMY MCKAY, PT, DPT: Yeah it’s just not easy for you to not be able to use it while you’re working with a client. So it’s good that the user experience is high. How about the price? It’s always important too right?

CHELSEA LEROY, MS, CCC, SLP: And actually that’s when it’s free.

JIMMY MCKAY, PT, DPT: Jackpot. You can’t beat free.

CHELSEA LEROY, MS, CCC, SLP: Free is honestly not that hard to be with that for sure. And so simple that it’s worth the time just download it here.

JIMMY MCKAY, PT, DPT: How about app function does it do what it actually says it does and does it work right. Each time.

CHELSEA LEROY, MS, CCC, SLP: Yes. The title itself advertises basic. It does exactly what it says. It actually gives you a couple of options. You can use the standard protocol which is 15 seconds, 30 seconds, one minute, two minutes. It also gives you the option to use another method. I don’t use this one too often. Very rarely do I do it. But it’s the graduated protocol. And you do five seconds, ten seconds, 20 seconds, forty, one minute, two, three. So you get more trials in less periods of time depending on your patient. You can actually kind of individualized with spaced retrieval therapy that you’re doing for them which is really nice.

JIMMY MCKAY, PT, DPT: And now let’s go overall. If an app doesn’t work right. If it doesn’t do the thing it says it does if it’s hard to use. We just kind of wrap that up with overall experience. What would you give it in terms of overall experience what would you say if someone asked you about it?

CHELSEA LEROY, MS, CCC, SLP: I would say overall it’s an amazing area. Coming from a clinician, you know it gets the job done. It does exactly what it says it’s going to do. It doesn’t distract you from your patient your attention from beyond that person and it doesn’t distract the patient either which is really nice.

JIMMY MCKAY, PT, DPT: If you were to score it from one to five foxes. Five foxes being a perfect score. How does constant therapy how does it grade?

CHELSEA LEROY, MS, CCC, SLP: Five foxes.

JIMMY MCKAY, PT, DPT: Five entire foxes a very high mark. Check this out on Apple devices on Android devices and as Chelsea mentioned you can also get through this through your Amazon account as well. So really whatever kind of device you have. So appreciate you taking some time to give us this app review to get us inside constant therapy.

CHELSEA LEROY, MS, CCC, SLP: Any time I love it and if it’s going to help other clinicians. We definitely have to bring it up.

JIMMY MCKAY, PT, DPT: Thanks for listening to FOXcast OT. A clinically excellent podcast. It’s brought to you by FOX Rehabilitation. Fox clinicians work hard to love their work and get the respect they deserve. Sound good? Then you’ll love the autonomy to work in your own style and the support you get to achieve excellence. Plus freedom and flexibility to have a personal life whether it’s your first day or you’ve been around for a while. Your contribution is acknowledged and rewarded. That’s what makes Fox success happy well-trained clinicians make great health care. Are you a fit for Fox? Find out now at FoxRehab.org.