Impact of Basic Needs Fulfillment on the Health, Well-being, and Academic Engagement of Occupational Therapy Students.

The basic needs of students may serve as unknown factors in academic engagement and well-being. Challenges in meeting these needs disproportionately impact underrepresented minority and first-generation students. The purpose of this pilot study was to explore the perceived presence and impact of basic needs on health, well-being, and academic engagement in occupational therapy students. A 43-item survey was distributed to 231 students and focused on questions addressing basic needs in physiology, safety, and belonging. Respondents reported worry over or the need to work to pay bills, no support from family/friends, and limited access to food in the past 30 days and related this to feeling stressed, not being able to do homework, not participating in class, and loss of leisure time. Ninety-four percent used student health services frequently. Recommendations to address gaps in basic needs include flexible policies, inclusive learning environments, supportive and intentional actions, and providing resources.

Preliminary Rasch Construct and Reliability Validation of TeleWrite: A Telehealth-Based Handwriting Assessment.

BACKGROUND: Telehealth is rapidly expanding, and telehealth-based occupational therapy assessments must be developed and validated to keep pace with this transition. TeleWrite aims to bridge this gap. OBJECTIVES: To analyze the tool's initial psychometric properties using Rasch methods. METHOD: Internal construct validity and test reliability were analyzed using data from 148 children from first to third grade. RESULTS: Rasch analysis helped to identify that TeleWrite is composed of three separate constructs for rate, accuracy, and fluency. All Infit/Outfit mean square (MNSQ) values fell within acceptable ranges of 0.5 to 1.7 logits. Separation analysis indicated lower but acceptable person separation values for rate (0.68-0.76) and fluency (0.61-0.73), but accuracy scales were in the poor-fair range (0.20-0.60), given sample limitations. CONCLUSION: TeleWrite is comprised of three separate constructs, showed a good fit with the Rasch model, indicated strong construct and internal validity, and moderate ability to reliably separate abilities of students in terms of handwriting skills.

The Development and Preliminary Psychometric Properties of the TeleWrite: A Telehealth-Based Handwriting Assessment for School-Aged Children.

This article describes the development and preliminary psychometric properties of the TeleWrite, a handwriting assessment tool designed to measure the rate, accuracy, and fluency of children's handwriting for children in first through third grade administered via telehealth. A series of three pilot studies were completed to determine initial interrater reliability, content validity, and clinical utility of the TeleWrite. A study with eight children was used to determine preliminary interrater reliability testing using a beta version of the TeleWrite with (n = 9) raters. The reliability coefficient was obtained using intraclass correlation (ICC) and yielded α = 0.92 for total scores, CI [0.815, 0.983] and the Cronbach's α measure for internal consistency was α = 0.95 (excellent). A clinical utility survey of (n = 55) pediatric occupational therapists was used to obtain their clinical impression regarding the usefulness and accuracy. Representing twelve different countries and twenty-two U.S. states, the respondents indicated that 61% (n = 33) are quite or extremely likely to use the TeleWrite in their practice and most participants (64%; n = 35) indicated that TeleWrite was quite/extremely accurate in measuring handwriting performance. Third, a content validity study with nine handwriting experts reviewed and concluded that all ten subtests of the TeleWrite tool are considered essential. All preliminary studies strengthen the development of the TeleWrite assessment to advance to construct validation of the tool.

The Content Validity and Inter-Rater Reliability of the Occupational Therapy Pediatric Inventory of Cognitive Skills (OT-PICS): An Assessment Tool of Functional Cognition in Children.

The Occupational Therapy Pediatric Inventory of Cognitive Skills (OT-PICS) is being developed to evaluate functional cognition skills in children in the domains of play, educational participation, and self-care. This study aimed to determine the content validity and inter-rater reliability of the OT-PICS. Seven content experts agreed that all 15 items of the tool are essential items to examine functional cognition in children (k = 0.71-1.0; I-CVI = 0.71-1.0; S-CVI = 0.96. The OT-PICS also has moderate reliability (ICC = 0.63) between nine trained raters. The tool was then revised and refined for clarity based on therapist's comments and feedback.

Becoming Critical Consumers of Evidence in Occupational Therapy for Children and Youth.

This special issue of the American Journal of Occupational Therapy on interventions for children and youth highlights the current developments in and evidence for the effectiveness of occupational therapy interventions and psychometric properties of assessments for children and youth. In this guest editorial, we identify various factors that challenge the implementation of evidence-based strategies in daily clinical practice. We assert that scholars, educators, and practitioners need to address several strategic steps. To facilitate critical consumption of evidence in practice, efforts need to be made to build capacity for evidence production and evidence use through implementation science and to ensure that evidence-based practice is not only taught but also reflectively applied across the educational curriculum and that clinicians are given more access to resources that are easy to translate to daily clinical practice.

Interventions Within the Scope of Occupational Therapy to Improve Children's Academic Participation: A Systematic Review.

IMPORTANCE: Occupational therapy practitioners evaluate students' ability to participate in school and may provide services to improve learning, academic performance, and participation. OBJECTIVE: To examine the effectiveness of interventions within the scope of occupational therapy practice to improve academic participation of children and youth ages 5-21 yr. DATA SOURCES: We searched MEDLINE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, OTseeker, and Cochrane databases for articles published from 2000 to 2017 using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. STUDY SELECTION AND DATA COLLECTION: Within the scope of occupational therapy practice and focused on children ages 5-21 yr. FINDINGS: Forty-six studies were included, based on three themes: (1) interventions to support participation and learning in the classroom; (2) interventions to support motivation and participation in literacy, including combined reading, written expression, and comprehension; and (3) interventions to support handwriting. Low strength of evidence supports the use of weighted vests and stability balls, and moderate strength of evidence supports the use of yoga to enhance educational participation. Moderate strength of evidence supports the use of creative activities, parent-mediated interventions, and peer-supported interventions to enhance literacy participation. Strong evidence supports therapeutic practice for handwriting intervention, and low strength of evidence supports various handwriting programs as replacement or additional instructional strategies to enhance handwriting abilities. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: More rigorous studies are needed that are conducted by occupational therapy practitioners in school-based settings and that use measures of participation and academic outcomes. WHAT THIS ARTICLE ADDS: This systematic review provides occupational therapy practitioners with evidence on the use of activity-based and occupation-centered interventions to increase children's participation and learning in school.

Effectiveness of a Functional Literacy Program for Sheltered Homeless Adults.

This study aims to determine whether a functional literacy program using principles from the Cognitive Orientation to daily Occupational Performance approach and Occupational Adaptation theory, and embedded in community-based daily activities, could enhance occupational participation in a sample of sheltered homeless adults. This study used a two-group, controlled design with pre- and post-intervention measures. Intervention was carried out in a group setting in 1.5 hr, twice-weekly sessions over 8 weeks. Intervention addressed literacy skills needed to complete participant identified, desired daily activities. Statistically significant differences were found between intervention and control groups' perceived functional literacy skills with regard to occupational performance (Z = -4.075, p < .0001, d = 1.02) and satisfaction (Z = -4.113, p < .0001, d = 1.40); reading frequency (Z = -3.594, p < .0001, d = 0.48), reading effectiveness (Z = -10.673, p < .0001, d = 0.68), level of support (Z = -10.410, p < .0001, d = 1.81), and reading efficiency (Z = -10.297, p < .0001, d = 1.83). The intervention enhanced perceived reading and occupational participation in the study's sample. Further research is needed to replicate and translate results in daily practice.

A Rasch Analysis Study Determining the Internal Validity and Separation Reliability of the Inventory of Reading Occupations - Adult: A Measure of Functional Literacy Participation.

The objective of this study was to determine the internal validity and separation reliability of the Inventory of Reading Occupations - Adult (IRO-Adult), an assessment of functional literacy participation for adults. Participants included 69 adults with typical reading abilities and difficulties with reading. The fit of the IRO-Adult items was analyzed with the Rasch model of unidimensionality using goodness-of-fit analysis and analysis of standardized residuals. Also analyzed was the tool's ability to reliably separate distinct levels of reading participation and the optimal functioning of its rating scales. The IRO-Adult items fit the Rasch model of unidimensionality. Three test items can be further refined to strengthen internal validity. Items are able to reliably detect multiple levels of reading participation and change in functional literacy participation over time. Several categories in the tool's rating scale can be combined for better clarity and to optimize rating scale functioning. The study provides preliminary evidence of validity and reliability of the IRO-Adult as a useful tool to assess functional literacy participation of adults. Further studies on other psychometric properties and clinical utility are warranted.

Internationalization in an Occupational Therapy Curriculum: A Philippine-American Pilot Collaboration.

OBJECTIVE: This study is a pilot implementation of an Internationalization at Home (IaH) teaching and learning collaboration to enhance intercultural learning and understanding of concepts of occupation in two cohorts of occupational science and occupational therapy students from the Philippines and the United States. METHOD: In this collective case study, 149 students (Cohort 1, n = 65; Cohort 2, n = 84) participated. The collaboration included virtual conversations among students, faculty presentations, reflective assignments, and completion of an anonymous online survey. RESULTS: Analysis yielded three essential themes: (1) perception of increased knowledge about human occupation and the influence of culture, (2) identification of teaching-learning aspects that facilitated intercultural learning outcomes, and (3) identification of factors that were enablers of and barriers to learning. CONCLUSION: This study provides insights on how intercultural learning experiences can be integrated into occupational science and occupational therapy curricula and can increase understanding of concepts related to human occupation.

International Educational Interactions and Students' Critical Consciousness: A Pilot Study.

Online technologies facilitate connections between students around the world, but their impact on occupational science and occupational therapy students' critical consciousness about culture is underexplored. In this article we present research on five groups of occupational science and occupational therapy students across two cohorts at one Midwestern university. We used a pretest-posttest group design and the Multicultural Experiences Questionnaire to investigate the potential influence of students' exposure to international educational interactions on their multicultural experiences and desires. Of 157 students surveyed, those who experienced the greatest number of international educational interactions demonstrated statistically significant increases in their desire to become acquainted with other people of different backgrounds and to explore their own prejudices and biases. Given the transformative potential of international educational interactions, future research must assess the ways in which such interactions affect critical cultural consciousness apart from other educational content and design.

Determining the Internal Validity of the Inventory of Reading Occupations: An Assessment Tool of Children's Reading Participation.

The Inventory of Reading Occupations (IRO) is an assessment tool of children's reading participation. In this study, we used Rasch methods to determine the internal validity of the IRO. Participants included 192 typical and struggling readers from kindergarten to third grade from five different states in the United States. We analyzed the fit of each of the items in the 17 reading categories, the test items in the three dimensions of reading participation, and the contexts of reading in the IRO. Analysis indicated that the IRO items support the Rasch model of unidimensionality. Analysis also indicated that 1 of the 30 test items can be revised to strengthen test validity. Moreover, the analysis also suggested that the IRO is more useful for first- to third-grade students. This study provides evidence of internal validity of a useful tool to assess children's reading participation.