Cost effectiveness of the occupation-based approach for subacute stroke patients: result of a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The cost effectiveness of occupational therapy for subacute stroke patients is unclear in the extant literature. Consequently, this study determined the cost effectiveness of the occupation-based approach using Aid for Decision-Making in Occupation Choice (ADOC) for subacute stroke patients compared with an impairment-based approach. METHODS: We conducted an economic evaluation from a societal perspective alongside a pilot randomized controlled trial, with a single blind assessor for participants in 10 subacute rehabilitation units in Japan. The intervention group received occupation-based goal setting using ADOC, with interventions focused on meaningful occupations. The control group received an impairment-based approach focused on restoring capacities. For both groups, occupational-therapy intervention was administered more than five times per week, for over 40 min each time, and they received physical and speech therapy prior to discharge. The main outcomes were quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) and total costs. Further, sensitivity analyses were performed to examine the influence of parameter uncertainty on the base case results. RESULTS: The final number of participants was 24 in each of the two groups. In terms of QALYs, the intervention group is significantly higher than the control group (p = 0.001, difference 95% CI: 0.002-0.008) and total costs are not statistically significant. Applying a willingness-to-pay threshold of JPY 5 million/QALY, the probability of the occupation-based approach using ADOC being cost effective was estimated to be 65.3%. CONCLUSIONS: The results show that the occupation-based approach is associated with significantly improved QALYs and has potential cost effectiveness, compared with the impairment-based approach.

Effectiveness and Cost-Effectiveness of Occupation-Based Occupational Therapy Using the Aid for Decision Making in Occupation Choice (ADOC) for Older Residents: Pilot Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: Care-home residents are mostly inactive, have little interaction with staff, and are dependent on staff to engage in daily occupations. We recently developed an iPad application called the Aid for Decision-making in Occupation Choice (ADOC) to promote shared decision-making in activities and occupation-based goal setting by choosing from illustrations describing daily activities. This study aimed to evaluate if interventions based on occupation-based goal setting using the ADOC could focus on meaningful activities to improve quality of life and independent activities of daily living, with greater cost-effectiveness than an impairment-based approach as well as to evaluate the feasibility of conducting a large cluster, randomized controlled trial. METHOD: In this single (assessor)-blind pilot cluster randomized controlled trial, the intervention group (ADOC group) received occupational therapy based on occupation-based goal setting using the ADOC, and the interventions were focused on meaningful occupations. The control group underwent an impairment-based approach focused on restoring capacities, without goal setting tools. In both groups, the 20-minute individualized intervention sessions were conducted twice a week for 4 months. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Short Form-36 (SF-36) score, SF-6D utility score, quality adjusted life years (QALY), Barthel Index, and total care cost. RESULTS: We randomized and analyzed 12 facilities (44 participants, 18.5% drop-out rate), with 6 facilities each allocated to the ADOC (n = 23) and control (n = 21) groups. After the 4-month intervention, the ADOC group had a significantly greater change in the BI score, with improved scores (P = 0.027, 95% CI 0.41 to 6.87, intracluster correlation coefficient = 0.14). No other outcome was significantly different. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio, calculated using the change in BI score, was $63.1. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that occupational therapy using the ADOC for older residents might be effective and cost-effective. We also found that conducting an RCT in the occupational therapy setting is feasible. TRIAL REGISTRATION: UMIN Clinical Trials Registry UMIN000012994.

Comparison of occupation-based and impairment-based occupational therapy for subacute stroke: a randomized controlled feasibility study.

OBJECTIVE: To compare occupation-based and impairment-based approaches in occupational therapy and determine the feasibility of patient recruitment and retention. DESIGN: A multicenter, randomized, controlled pilot trial with a single blind assessor. SETTING: Ten subacute rehabilitation units in Japan. PARTICIPANTS: Fifty-four patients with subacute stroke. INTERVENTIONS: The experimental group used the iPad application, Aid for Decision-making in Occupation Choice, to establish occupation-based goals, and evaluation and intervention were conducted mainly through real occupations. The control group was evaluated according to patients' generic abilities and activities of daily living (ADL), and the intervention mainly involved the impairment-based approach. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Short Form-36, Functional Independence Measure, Brunnstrom recovery stages, The Client Satisfaction Questionnaire, and length of hospital stay. RESULTS: Of the 1465 potential participants, 54 (3%) subacute stroke patients were enrolled over 16 months and 68% (n = 36) were retained to the 2-month assessment: experimental group (n = 16); control group (n = 21). Although there was no significant intergroup difference for any outcomes, the experimental group had a small effect size advantage on the Short Form-36 "General health" (d = 0.42) and "Role emotional" (d = 0.43) subscales relative to the control group. A sample of 118 subacute stroke patients per group would be required for a lager study. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that the occupation-based approach has more potential to improve "General health" and "Role emotional" scores on the Short Form-36 than the impairment-based approach. Further investigation of study protocol with interventions and recruiting is needed prior to a larger trial.

Examination of a cut-off score to express the meaningful activity of people with dementia using iPad application (ADOC).

PURPOSE: To determine a quantifiable measure to identify patients with dementia who can choose an illustration of meaningful activity using an iPad application, Aid for Decision-making in Occupation Choice (ADOC). METHOD: We recruited 116 patients from 5 institutions in Japan. Occupational therapists interviewed patients with dementia to determine meaningful activities using ADOC. The most meaningful activity was confirmed by their primary caregivers. The cut-off was estimated from Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). RESULTS: Receiver operating characteristic analysis indicated that an MMSE score of 8 was the cut-off for choosing meaningful activities using ADOC. Sensitivity and specificity was 91.0% and 74.1%, respectively, and the area under the curve value was 0.89. CONCLUSION: ADOC can provide individualized information regarding meaningful activities for patients with moderate dementia. Implications for Rehabilitation As dementia progresses, difficulty in expressing needs or desires regarding meaningful activity may increase. The iPad application (Aid for Decision-making in Occupation Choice; ADOC) can be useful to promote shared decision-making through a systematic goal-setting process involving a choice of 95 illustrations describing daily activities. Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score greater than 8 points is required to use the ADOC to choose most meaningful activities. ADOC provides individual information regarding meaningful activities for patients with moderate dementia.

Reliability and validity of individualized satisfaction score in aid for decision-making in occupation choice.

PURPOSE: The iPad application aid for decision-making in occupation choice (ADOC) was developed to measure the client's satisfaction with individualized occupational performance of meaningful and purposeful activities. The present study examined the reliability and validity of individualized satisfaction measurement using the ADOC. METHOD: The Japanese version of the ADOC was used by 36 occupational therapists on 92 of their clients (44 males, 48 females, mean age 66.4 ± 17.8 years). Convergent and discriminant validity were examined using Pearson's correlation between ADOC satisfaction score and the Life Satisfaction Index K (LSIK) factors: Factor 1 (satisfaction with life), Factor 2 (optimistic and positive disposition) and Factor 3 (evaluation of own aging). Test-retest reliability was assessed using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). RESULTS: Ninety-two clients completed the validation study. Satisfaction with ADOC significantly correlated with LSIK Factor 1 (r = 0.297, p < 0.01), but not with Factors 2 or 3 (r = -0.045 and -0.089, respectively). Of the 92 clients, 78 participated in the test-retest reliability study. Good to moderate correlation was revealed (ICC = 0.712, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The Japanese version of the ADOC is a valid and reliable instrument for measuring client satisfaction with individualized occupational performance.

Utilization of the iPad application: Aid for Decision-making in Occupation Choice.

The purpose of the study was to develop and evaluate an iPad (Apple) application, Aid for Decision-making in Occupation Choice (ADOC), so as to promote shared decision-making in an occupation-based goal setting. This application involves the client choosing from 94 illustrations describing daily activities related to the category of "activities and participation". One hundred occupational therapy clients evaluated the ADOC for goal setting; the clients and 37 occupational therapists underwent a survey to determine their perceptions of decision-making in the goal setting. More than 90% of the clients felt that they could give their opinions using the ADOC regarding goal setting. The majority of the occupational therapists (>90%) felt that ADOC would be useful in their clinical practice for setting client goals. The results indicated that ADOC is a useful and acceptable tool for both clients and occupational therapists in shared decision-making in occupation-based goal setting.