Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy最新文献

Introduction: Homecare services are limited, and there is likely a gap between the everyday activities homecare users want to do and the activities they perform or receive help with. Structured assessment on the desire for engaging in activities may be useful to identify unmet occupational needs.

Aim: To reflect on the experiences of using the Occupational Gaps Questionnaire (OGQ) to investigate how homecare users express the desire to do everyday activities they know they cannot perform without help, and to deepen the understanding of how the desire of doing may be restricted beyond limitations in language and cognition.

Method: OGQ interviews were conducted with 11 older adults who received daily homecare. The interviews were analysed thematically.

Result/discussion: The homecare users reported few occupational gaps. Activities that were previously part of their occupational repertoire and considered to be meaningful were no longer desired. The desire to engage in activities appears to be influenced by functional decline and the structural limitations of homecare. Structured assessments might not capture the full picture of what a person desires to do, however may spark valuable conversations. For person-centered eldercare, professionals must acknowledge how functional decline and structural limitations influence what older adults desire to do.

Background: Assessment of work ability is complex yet crucial in occupational health and vocational rehabilitation. Evaluating psychometric properties is essential to ensure the accuracy of assessment tools in this field.

Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the Finnish version of the Assessment of Work Performance (AWP-FI) with a focus on construct validity.

Material and methods: The AWP assesses a client's observable working skills during work performance in three domains: motor skills, process skills, and communication and interaction skills. Ninety-four AWP-FI assessments were performed by 17 occupational therapists in Finland. A Rasch analysis was conducted to evaluate the psychometric properties.

Results: The AWP-FI presented an overall fit to the Rasch model with acceptable item-fit statistics and items performing stably between gender, work tasks, and observation types. A suboptimal targeting was evident and issues concerning local dependency among items and indications of multidimensionality were indicated.

Conclusion: This study provides an initial validation of the AWP-FI, demonstrating generally acceptable psychometric properties, suggesting that the AWP-FI is valid and reliable for assessing work performance. Further testing is recommended to address the identified issues with local dependence and suboptimal targeting.

Background: The occupational therapy intervention, Active in My Home (AiMH), puts occupational engagement, participation in society and personal recovery in focus and includes increased staff support.

Aims/objectives: To investigate how the residents experienced the AiMH support, with a focus on their possibilities for engaging in occupations and participating in society after the intervention.

Material and methods: Sixteen AiMH participants were interviewed at completion, and/or 6-9 months after completion. Data were analysed using content analysis.

Results: The main theme was: Boosting personal recovery by discovering new capacities and activity opportunities. Four categories also emerged: Stimulating with new approaches to support and interaction from the staff, Opportunities to reflect on personal recovery were essential, Engaging in reflection and exploring new activities initiated a positive cycle of change and Interacting with group participants and staff provided new perspectives and motivation.

Conclusion: The participants gained knowledge about how to engage in meaningful everyday life activities. AiMH contributed to a more supportive housing climate and increased sense of security and connectedness.

Significance: AiMH can fill a gap in occupational therapy interventions for residents in supported housing (SH) in Sweden and has potential to change the caregiving culture by promoting a more recovery-oriented form of support.

Background: Outdoor play on playgrounds is fundamental for children's health and wellbeing. However, the usability of playgrounds can influence children's play, resulting in potential barriers for children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD). Aim: This study describes the wellbeing of children with DCD and the usability of playgrounds, from their parents' views. Methods: A cross-sectional design was applied. 35 parents of children (4-7 years) with DCD answered a questionnaire, which was analysed descriptively. Results: The results show that parents perceived public playgrounds as valuable play spaces contributing to their children's occupational wellbeing. Parents reported that their children played in a broad variety of ways, but playground usability was limited concerning the domains of competence, identity, and belonging. Children's play competence was perceived as being hindered, including in the child's individual play preferences (e.g. climbing, swinging, or balancing). Conclusion: An increased understanding on how the usability of playgrounds relates to occupational wellbeing for children with DCD could contribute to an enhancement of occupation-based clinical practice.

Background: Visual research methods (VRMs), including photovoice, photo-elicitation, drawing, collaging, and videography, are increasingly employed in qualitative research exploring occupation. However, an in-depth analysis of these methods within occupational science (OS) and occupational therapy (OT) is scarce.

Objectives: To summarize the literature on VRMs and critically analyze the use within OS and OT, with a particular focus on the methodological aspects of VRMs' application.

Materials and methods: The six steps of the scoping review framework were followed. The extracted data were analyzed using summative content analysis.

Findings: Seventy-three articles were included in the analysis. VRMs were used with people of all age groups across all continents, with and without disabilities or health conditions. VRMs were used both independently and in combination with other research methods, most often within ethnographic or phenomenological methodological frameworks. Thematic analysis was the most frequent method of data analysis.

Conclusions and significance: The review provides insights into occupation-related topics and populations studied using VRMs and the methods of collecting and analyzing data from visual materials. VRMs can enhance occupation-focused participatory research. It is essential that researchers in OS and OT adhere to rigorous protocols and to clearly articulate the purpose of using VRMs.

Background: Assessing perceptions of occupational balance is essential in both clinical occupational therapy and research. Attempts to characterise occupational balance often arrive at multi-faceted explanations, including a variety of occupations, personal satisfaction, and time allocation.

Aim: This study aimed to deepen the understanding of occupational balance as a phenomenon and investigate the relevance and usability of the Satisfaction with Daily Occupations and Occupational Balance (SDO-OB), which assesses occupational balance from the multi-faceted perspective mentioned above.

Methods: A cross-sectional and longitudinal design was employed. Patients undergoing the treatment method Tree Theme Method^™ for depression and/or anxiety completed the SDO-OB and a background questionnaire. Conventional statistical analyses were used.

Results: Variety of occupations and personal satisfaction remained stable between baseline and follow-up, while participants' time allocation shifted from underoccupied towards balanced in the home and maintenance domain. All three perspectives of occupational balance were intercorrelated at baseline, and baseline scores on variety of occupations and on time allocation in work, leisure, and household domains were associated with personal satisfaction at follow-up.

Conclusion and significance: The three perspectives appeared to represent a unified phenomenon-occupational balance-while still offering unique insights. The SDO-OB seems relevant for both clinical occupational therapy and research.

Trial registration: Clinical Trials.gov: NCT01980381.

Background: Within the development of new interventions, it is of highly important to address social participation since it is associated with improved physical and mental health. Therefore, a new intervention in occupational therapy, 'The health Web' was developed.

Aim: The aim of this study was to explore and describe how older adults experienced the intervention process of 'The Health Web' provided by an occupational therapist, and whether the intervention has the potential to promote social participation.

Material and methods: An exploratory descriptive case study was designed. Five older adults and an occupational therapist were included. Interviews, self-assessments, registration forms and field-notes were used to collect data. The data were analysed using pattern-matching.

Results: The results consist of two cases: A) Continuous engagement promoted the development of strategies and: B) Uneven engagement inhibited the development of strategies. Each case is described with three categories representing the experienced intervention process of the older adults in the respective case.

Conclusions and significance: The results suggest that the intervention has some potential to support older adults' in using strategies supporting social participation. This study provides valuable insights for the continued development of the intervention.

Background: There is limited experience in combining interdisciplinary rehabilitation for persons with dementia and caregiver support.

Aim: To explore how informal caregivers perceive participation in a person-centred, multidimensional, interdisciplinary rehabilitation programme targeting community-dwelling older adults with dementia and their informal caregivers, and how the programme has influenced their everyday life.

Material and methods: Fourteen informal caregivers, aged 45-84 years, participated in a qualitative interview following a randomised controlled pilot study. Transcribed interviews were analysed using qualitative content analysis.

Results: The analysis resulted in seven categories and three themes: feeling challenged and boosted to face an uncertain future, perceiving supportive activities as sources of both joy and frustration in everyday life and finding relief in recognising their relative's former self.

Conclusions and significance: Combining interdisciplinary rehabilitation for adults with dementia with education and support for caregivers was perceived as viable and valuable for the informal caregivers. They felt strengthened by the rehabilitation and better prepared for their uncertain future. However, participation also challenged everyday routines, but the benefits appeared to outweigh the strain.

Background: Despite valuing occupation, occupational therapists report barriers to enacting occupation-based practice. One barrier noted in the literature is hegemony, the dominance of one social group's ideas over others. Specifically, biomedical and business models dominating healthcare are reported to significantly impact occupational therapists.

Objective: To describe how occupational therapists experience and manage hegemony in an acute mental health setting in the United States.

Methods: A community of practice scholars composed of nine occupational therapists participated in a practice-based enquiry. Scholars recorded their reflections on their practice and engaged in collective research discussions. All data were transcribed and analysed using narrative and thematic processes.

Results: Data analysis resulted in three themes that reflect the shifting and varying narratives of the community of practice scholars: (1) making waves; (2) staying afloat; and (3) sailing away.

Conclusions and relevance: The findings highlight the varied experiences and changing responses of the therapists as they gained awareness of hegemony in an acute mental health setting. While some therapists remained passive and 'stayed afloat' and others left the practice site or 'sailed away', others were empowered to 'make waves' and advocate for change and counter hegemony.