A qualitative study of child participation in decision-making: Exploring rights-based approaches in pediatric occupational therapy.

BACKGROUND: According to Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, therapists are duty-bound to include children in decisions that impact them. Although occupational therapists champion client-centred, collaborative practice, there remains a paucity of studies detailing children's rights and experiences of decision-making in pediatric occupational therapy. PURPOSE: This qualitative study described the decision-making experiences of children, parents and therapists in occupational therapy. METHODS: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 participants (six children, five parents and six occupational therapists), and data analysed using thematic analysis. FINDINGS: Three themes emerged: 1) Goal-setting experiences; 2) Adults: child-rights gatekeepers or defenders? and 3) Decision-making in context. Findings suggest that decision-making is mostly adult directed, and children's voices are subsumed by adult-led services, priorities, and agendas. IMPLICATIONS: Children's rights need to be embedded as an aspect of best practice in providing services that are child-centred in occupational therapy practices and education.

Neoliberalism: Unpacking Limited Employment Success for Persons with SMI.

BACKGROUND.: A mixed-methods case study exploring access to competitive employment for persons with serious mental illness (SMI) revealed limited access to work and low employment success across two northern communities. PURPOSE.: To explore possible explanations for why low employment rates persist despite existing employment services and supports. METHODS.: A total of 46 individual or group interviews were conducted with persons with SMI, vocational providers, and decision-makers regarding access to competitive employment in the case communities. Data were systematically analysed for dominant ideas, interests and institutions using a neo-institutional framework. FINDINGS.: Participants described access to employment to be constrained by provider competition, limited supports, and a lack of consideration of difference-ideas and interests associated with neoliberal influences within provincial employment supports policy. IMPLICATIONS.: Enabling participation in meaningful employment for people with SMI will require occupational therapists to appreciate and contest the oppressive nature of neoliberal policies on local programs and services.

National evaluation of policies governing funding for wheelchairs and scooters in Canada: Évaluation nationale des politiques régissant le financement des fauteuils roulants, des triporteurs et des quadriporteurs au Canada.

BACKGROUND: Wheelchairs, scooters, and related equipment are essential for the well-being of individuals with limited mobility and impact participation, health, and quality of life. PURPOSE: Our objective was to identify and evaluate policies governing equipment funding for Canadian adults. We reviewed funding legislation and program documentation for adult Canadians (≥18 years of age) covered by their provincial, territorial, or federal health care plan. Documents were obtained online or through administrative staff. Policy evaluation was guided by the Disability Policy Lens from the Canadian Disability Policy Alliance. KEY ISSUES: Coverage ranges from full funding for all individuals within the jurisdiction to programs limited by strict eligibility criteria. Each jurisdiction defines "disability" or "basic/essential need" differently, contributing to further funding disparities. IMPLICATIONS: Funding policies differ substantially across Canada, resulting in unequal access to equipment dependent on province or territory. We identified eligibility, funding, definitions of mobility, repair and replacement, and prescriber requirement benchmarks that represent policy targets for improved access.

Assistive technology reasoning in rural school-based occupational therapy.

This study explores broad issues associated with assistive technology (AT) service provision in rural school settings. The study was designed to explore the beliefs of practitioners working in rural schools about their role in AT service provision. This article includes an extensive review of the literature and findings from a naturalistic study of AT service provision experience in rural school settings. The study portion of this article involved completion of an open-ended questionnaire followed by semi-structured ethnographic interviews. The participants completing the questionnaires were 22 occupational therapy practitioners and seven individuals from a variety of professional backgrounds recognized as leaders in AT in the state of West Virginia. Data were collected over a 3-year period. Themes identified in the data emphasized concerns about the unclear role of potential AT providers resulting in the use of AT as a last resort, the lack of inclusion of AT in the core curriculum, and the limited collaboration and in-service education opportunities recognized by practitioners. This qualitative study is not generalizable. Findings can be viewed within the context of other research to help enrich the reader's understanding of AT service delivery.

Perceptions of Occupational Therapists on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act: Five Years After Its Enactment.

This study explored the perceptions of occupational therapists regarding the impact and implications of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA or ACA) on occupational therapy practice. Fifteen occupational therapists participated in an interview to answer open-ended questions related to their thoughts and perceptions regarding the impact and implications of the ACA on their practice. The participants were practicing in eight different states and worked in five different settings with clinical experience ranging from 3 to 38 years; their positions ranged from staff therapist to owner of a free-standing outpatient clinic. Qualitative content analysis was used to synthesize the interview transcripts. Results showed that therapists did not have sufficient knowledge on the various mandates and provisions of the ACA, or were uncertain about what implications the ACA would have on practice, with the ACA affecting some settings more than others. Data revealed the perceived impacts of the ACA on occupational therapy practice include greater attention on documenting outcome-focused care, external accountability pressures on productivity, conscientiousness about clients' insurance coverage, uncertainty about collaborative care delivery, and survival of small businesses. Findings suggest training regarding knowledge about and implications of different elements of the ACA is needed as well as practices needing to promote the services that occupational therapists can provide to improve cost-effectiveness and outcomes in collaborative care environments.

[Not Available]. / Il consenso informato in Terapia Occupazionale: proposta di una modulistica.

UNLABELLED: The legislative developments that led to the Three-year Degree of the Health Professions poses any health professional in the position of having to comply with the ethical and legal duty to obtain valid informed consent from the patient prior to treatment. In the present work, attention was focused on the figure of the occupational therapist. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Informed consent forms have been developed according to the specific disease from which the patient undergoing occupational therapy is affected. The following categories of sick were identified: amputation, developmental age, orthopedy, spinal cord injury, neurology, psychiatry, geriatry and oncology. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The consent forms are particularly well suited to obtaining valid consent from the patient and, at the same time, allow the occupational therapist to obtain all the information he/she needs to carry out the treatment in safety. This results improved patient compliance to therapy by facilitating a better empathic relationship with the therapist.

[Assessment of prescriptive therapies and remedies - Experience and results].

In the years 2005-2015, a leading assessment institute conducted numerous assessments on behalf of two major German private health insurance companies concerning the necessity of prescriptive therapies and remedies. The findings are presented in this article, and the results vary significantly, depending on the prescriptive therapy assessed.

Dysphagia training after head and neck cancer fails to follow legislation and national recommendations.

INTRODUCTION: Dysphagia is a known sequela after head and neck cancer (HNC) and causes malnutrition, aspiration pneumonia and a reduced quality of life. Due to improved survival rates, the number of patients with sequelae is increasing. Evidence on the ideal HNC-specific rehabilitation of dysphagia is lacking, but several studies indicate that early initiation is crucial. The aim of this study was to map the existing dysphagia rehabilitation programmes for HNC patients in Denmark. METHODS: Occupational therapists (OTs), oncologists and surgeons from five hospitals participated in a nationwide questionnaire-based survey, along with OTs from 39 municipal health centres. RESULTS: HNC patients rarely receive preventive occupational therapy before treatment, and hospital-based OTs mainly attend to HNC patients undergoing surgery. Far from all oncology and surgical departments complete the required rehabilitation plans upon discharge which leaves many patients untreated. There are vast differences between the municipalities' rehabilitation programmes and between the expertise employed in municipalities and hospitals. CONCLUSION: Existing HNC rehabilitation does not meet official Danish guidelines. Only a fraction of HNC patients are offered rehabilitation and often long after completing treatment. Municipal rehabilitation services vary considerably in terms of type, duration, intensity and expertise. Dysphagia-related rehabilitation requires an improved monitoration, possibly with an increase in the uptake of centralised dysphagia rehabilitation. FUNDING: not relevant. TRIAL REGISTRATION: not relevant.

Predictors of receiving therapy among very low birth weight 2-year olds eligible for Part C early intervention in Wisconsin.

BACKGROUND: The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (Part C) authorizes states to establish systems to provide early intervention services (e.g., therapy) for children at risk, with the incentive of federal financial support. This study examines family and neighborhood characteristics associated with currently utilizing physical, occupational, or speech therapy among very low birthweight (VLBW) 2-year-old children who meet Wisconsin eligibility requirements for early intervention services (EI) due to developmental delay. METHODS: This cross-sectional analysis used data from the Newborn Lung Project, a regional cohort study of VLBW infants hospitalized in Wisconsin's newborn intensive care units during 2003-2004. We included the 176 children who were age two at follow-up, and met Wisconsin state eligibility requirements for EI based on developmental delay. Exact logistic regression was used to describe child and neighborhood socio-demographic correlates of parent-reported receipt of therapy. RESULTS: Among VLBW children with developmental delay, currently utilizing therapy was higher among children with Medicaid (aOR = 5.3, 95% CI: 1.3, 28.3) and concomitant developmental disability (aOR = 5.2, 95% CI: 2.1, 13.3) and lower for those living in a socially more disadvantaged neighborhood (aOR=0.48, 95% CI: 0.21, 0.98, per tertile). CONCLUSIONS: Among a sample of VLBW 2-year olds with developmental delays who are EI-eligible in WI, 4 out of 5 were currently receiving therapy, per parent report. Participation in Medicaid positively influences therapy utilization. Children with developmental difficulties who live in socially disadvantaged neighborhoods are at highest risk for not receiving therapy.

P4 medicine and pediatric occupational therapy.

Pediatric occupational therapy practitioners face a complex and ever-changing health care environment, creating many challenges and opportunities. P4 medicine is a systems approach to health care that emphasizes proactive wellness over reactive acute care disease management. The four Ps of P4 medicine stand for predictive, personalized, preventive, and participatory, concepts that align well with the practice of pediatric occupational therapy. P4 medicine offers a model for pediatric occupational therapy practitioners to demonstrate the value of occupational therapy services.

International guidelines for education in vestibular rehabilitation therapy.

The Barany Society Ad Hoc Committee on Vestibular Rehabilitation Therapy has developed guidelines for developing educational programs for continuing education. These guidelines may be useful to individual therapists who seek to learn about vestibular rehabilitation or who seek to improve their knowledge bases. These guidelines may also be useful to professional organizations or therapists who provide continuing education in vestibular rehabilitation. We recommend a thorough background in basic vestibular science as well as an understating of current objective diagnostic testing and diagnoses, understanding of common tests used by therapists to assess postural control, vertigo and ability to perform activities of daily living. We recommend that therapists be familiar with the evidence supporting efficacy of available treatments as well as with limitations in the current research.

Visiting the mentally ill: volunteer visitors at Saskatchewan hospital, Weyburn 1950-1965.

This article offers a glimpse into the lives and activities of some of the patients, volunteers and staff in the Saskatchewan mental health system during the period of deinstitutionalization. Drawing on her own experience as a patient in psychiatric wards as well as ongoing research in the history of mental health, it features the role of Regina Volunteer Visitors in Saskatchewan Hospital, Weyburn and examines the importance of occupational and recreational therapies and activities in improving the lives of the patients in that institution. It emphasizes the perspectives of patients and volunteers who actively worked to develop recreational activities, with the intention of helping individuals connect with the surrounding communities. The views and perspectives presented here are drawn from a variety of historical and oral interview sources, including views from visitors to the asylum and patients who lived within its walls. The author has also been a consumer of mental health services, and spent time in the Provincial Mental Hospital in North Battleford. The article therefore makes an important contribution to enhancing our understanding of the social history of deinstitutionalization, not only for its unique source base, but also because those sources have been examined and explained to readers through the perspectives of a former patient herself. This article draws significant attention to the changing opportunities for patients as they interacted with the women's volunteer groups, as well as to how the changes brought about by the encroaching deinstitutionalization, care in the community, and decisions from "above" affected the individuals on the ground.

Occupational therapists as expert witnesses on work capacity.

AIM: The aim of this study was to explore the particular challenges for occupational therapists during their cross-examination as an expert witness on work capacity. METHODS: Grounded theory methodology was used to collect and analyse data. Interviews were conducted with 31 participants with direct experience of occupational therapy work capacity assessments. Of these, 19 were occupational therapists, six were medical specialists and six were lawyers. RESULTS: All participant groups perceived that maintaining one's credibility in the witness box was of paramount importance. The occupational therapists identified 11 strategies that barristers may use to challenge their credibility as an expert witness. CONCLUSIONS: The three professional groups proposed practices that maintain occupational therapists' credibility as expert witnesses on the work capacity of personal injury claimants.