Exploring occupational justice in consumer perspectives on assistive technology

2012 ◽  
Vol 79 (5) ◽  
pp. 309-319 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sajay Arthanat ◽  
C. Douglas Simmons ◽  
Megan Favreau
Keyword(s):  
Occupational Therapy ◽  
Assistive Technology ◽  
Personal Meanings ◽  
Personal Relation ◽  
Consumer Experiences ◽  
Consumer Perspectives ◽  
Therapy Services ◽  
Occupational Justice ◽  
Training And Support ◽  
And Training

Background. Occupational justice is an emerging paradigm in the provision of occupational therapy services. Assistive technology (AT) services, a key practice domain in occupational therapy, facilitate the participation of individuals with disabilities in all major occupations. Purpose. The goal of this study was to explore personal meanings of occupational justice among consumers of AT and to propose strategies that integrate values of occupational justice in AT services. Methods A content analysis of interviews with seven consumers of AT devices was employed. Themes relevant to the four conceptual definitions of occupational injustice, namely marginalization, alienation, deprivation, and imbalance, were identified. Findings. Four corresponding themes were inherent in the consumer experiences: ability to exercise choices through use of AT devices, using AT to achieve optimum occupational potential, empowerment through AT services, and personal relation to the AT device. Specific issues within these themes are classified and described according to the four conceptual definitions of occupational justice. Implications. The application of occupational justice is essential to promote client-centred AT services particularly in evaluation of needs, selection and acquisition of AT devices, and training and support for use of AT devices.

scholarly journals Re-orienting occupational therapy: Embracing generative disruption and revisiting a posture that acknowledges human dignity

2021 ◽  
Vol 51 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Roshan Galvaan
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Occupational Therapy ◽  
Human Dignity ◽  
Health Sector ◽  
Service Users ◽  
Local Contexts ◽  
Therapy Services ◽  
Difficult Dialogues ◽  
Occupational Justice ◽  
The One

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND: Amidst the Covid-19 lockdown that commenced in March 2020, while the profession and service-users were coming to terms with its vast implications, the Occupational Therapy Association of South Africa initiated a Webinar series that stimulated provocative discussions and difficult dialogues. The authors of this paper deliver a commentary, critically engaging with the challenges of cogently articulating the contribution of occupational therapy services across various sectors of service delivery during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic in South Africa. The challenges of on the one hand, negotiating the abrupt cessation of rehabilitation services, especially in the public sector and, on the other, advancing the reasoning for accessible, community-based services, are considered AIM: The commentary draws from presentations at and reflections on the webinar hosted on 24 June 2020 titled 'Ethical and Moral Challenges for Occupational Therapy'. In this paper, the competing ethical and moral issues arising from being urged to adopt different ways of thinking and doing occupational therapy during the Covid-19 lockdown are outlined PROPOSITION: It is suggested that experiences emerging from this pandemic are urging the profession to rethink its positionality in the health sector. Two main considerations deserve attention: The first is rethinking how we use occupational therapy knowledge to act from and in relation to local contexts, viewing people who are marginalised as knowledge and action partners through generative disruption. The second is to revisit what it entails to foster a posture that acknowledges human dignity CONCLUSION: Generative disruption includes a continuous and unabashed critical reflection of and on the limits of our practice and knowledge at hand. It means that we need to include service users and community partners in taking necessary steps to render services in local contexts most needed in recalibration toward social and occupational justice. In our knowledge-making partnerships, it is also imperative to revisit the posture of acknowledging human dignity Keywords: Covid-19; occupational therapy; occupational justice; human dignity; generative disruption

A Qualitative Examination of User Perceptions of User-Driven and App-Controlled Hearing Technologies

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 993-1005 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gitte Keidser ◽  
Nicole Matthews ◽  
Elizabeth Convery
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Aids ◽  
Care Delivery ◽  
Hearing Aid ◽  
New Technology ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Semistructured Interview ◽  
User Perceptions ◽  
Template Analysis ◽  
Training And Support ◽  
And Training

Purpose The aim of this study was to examine how hearing aid candidates perceive user-driven and app-controlled hearing aids and the effect these concepts have on traditional hearing health care delivery. Method Eleven adults (3 women, 8 men), recruited among 60 participants who had completed a research study evaluating an app-controlled, self-fitting hearing aid for 12 weeks, participated in a semistructured interview. Participants were over 55 years of age and had varied experience with hearing aids and smartphones. A template analysis was applied to data. Results Five themes emerged from the interviews: (a) prerequisites to the successful implementation of user-driven and app-controlled technologies, (b) benefits and advantages of user-driven and app-controlled technologies, (c) barriers to the acceptance and use of user-driven and app-controlled technologies, (d) beliefs that age is a significant factor in how well people will adopt new technology, and (e) consequences that flow from the adoption of user-driven and app-controlled technologies. Specifically, suggested benefits of the technology included fostering empowerment and providing cheaper and more discrete options, while challenges included lack of technological self-efficacy among older adults. Training and support were emphasized as necessary for successful adaptation and were suggested to be a focus of audiologic services in the future. Conclusion User perceptions of user-driven and app-controlled hearing technologies challenge the audiologic profession to provide adequate support and training for use of the technology and manufacturers to make the technology more accessible to older people.

Training-the-Trainer on Assistive Technology for Cognition (ATC): Current Practices

2013 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 90-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurie Ehlhardt Powell ◽  
Tracey Wallace ◽  
Michelle ranae Wild
Keyword(s):  
Brain Injury ◽  
Assistive Technology ◽  
Acquired Brain Injury ◽  
Online Training ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Train The Trainer ◽  
Rehabilitation Professionals ◽  
Remote Locations ◽  
Training Package ◽  
And Training

Research shows that if clinicians are to deliver effective, evidence-based assistive technology for cognition (ATC) services to clients with acquired brain injury (ABI), they first need opportunities to gain knowledge and experience with ATC assessment and training practices (O'Neil-Pirozzi, Kendrick, Goldstein, & Glenn, 2004). This article describes three examples of train the trainer materials and programs to address this need: (a) a toolkit for trainers to learn more about assessing and training ATC; (b) a comprehensive, trans-disciplinary program for training staff to provide ATC services in a metropolitan area; and (c) an overview of an on-site/online training package for rehabilitation professionals working with individuals with ABI in remote locations.

Promoting Occupational Therapy Mental Health Research: Proceedings From the 2017 AOTF Mental Health Planning Grant Collective

2021 ◽  
pp. 153944922110054
Author(s):  
Sharon A. Gutman
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Occupational Therapy ◽  
Community Participation ◽  
Health Planning ◽  
Occupational Therapists ◽  
Mental Health Research ◽  
Research Areas ◽  
People With Mental Illness ◽  
Health Community ◽  
Therapy Services

Although occupational therapists were once integrally involved in mental health practice, the percentage of therapists presently working in this clinical area is low. In 2017, the American Occupational Therapy Foundation convened a planning grant collective (PGC) to generate research to support populations with serious mental health challenges. The PGC’s primary mission was to identify key research areas in which occupational therapists and colleagues could work collaboratively to demonstrate evidence for occupational therapy services supporting mental health community participation. Participants included 21 members from six professions and three program officers from federal funding establishments. The PGC identified seven overarching research concepts, three broad areas of research inquiry, and eight possible studies addressing occupational therapy’s contribution to research promoting community participation and health outcomes for people with mental illness. This article provides a summary of the PGC proceedings so that researchers can collaboratively implement identified research topics.

scholarly journals Patient functional independence and occupational therapist time-use in inpatient services: Patient demographic and clinical correlates

2021 ◽  
pp. 156918612110187
Author(s):  
Bianca E Summers ◽  
Kate E Laver ◽  
Rebecca J Nicks ◽  
Nadine E Andrew ◽  
Christopher J Barr ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Occupational Therapy ◽  
Time Use ◽  
Health Care Expenditure ◽  
Functional Independence ◽  
Occupational Therapist ◽  
Sociodemographic Characteristics ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Patient Demographics ◽  
Therapy Services ◽  
Multivariable Modelling

Introduction Health care expenditure has rapidly increased in Australia. Effective management of occupational therapy services is required to meet clinical demand. Improving our understanding of factors which influence occupational therapy service delivery is a vital step to manage workload distribution and optimise service efficiency. This study aims to examine the influence of patient sociodemographic characteristics, diagnosis and functional independence on the utilisation of occupational therapy resources in hospital inpatients over 18 years old. Methods Prospective, cross-sectional, observational cohort study of 4549 inpatients from three hospital sites in Melbourne, Australia. Data extracted from organisational databases and included in this study were: patient demographics, diagnosis, functional level assessed using the SMAF (Functional Autonomy Measurement System) and occupational therapy time-use. Data were analysed using univariable and multivariable modelling. Results Occupational therapy time-use was significantly associated with all variables included in analysis ( p < 0.05). For each variable the amount and direction of effect differed between hospital sites. The SMAF was the only variable consistently associated with occupational therapy time-use. Higher occupational therapy time-use was associated with lower functional independence (leading to a 3.5 min increase in median occupational therapy time for every unit decrease in SMAF score). Conclusions Management of resources within busy hospitals require knowledge of factors associated with occupational therapist time-use. This study identified that time-use could in part be predicted by functional independence, diagnosis and sociodemographic characteristics. Occupational therapy managers can use this information to support decision making while acknowledging other patient and therapist level factors also influence time-use.

Compliance with Prescribed Adaptive Equipment: A Literature Review

2000 ◽  
Vol 63 (2) ◽  
pp. 65-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
Trish Wielandt ◽  
Jenny Strong
Keyword(s):  
Occupational Therapy ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Activities Of Daily Living ◽  
Daily Living ◽  
Current Practice ◽  
Functional Independence ◽  
Under Five ◽  
Functional Potential ◽  
And Training

This article describes a literature review that examined the topic of the postdischarge compliance of individuals with prescribed adaptive equipment. Assisting individuals to accomplish tasks relevant to their activities of daily living and thereby achieve functional independence is central to the role of occupational therapy. The prescription of adaptive equipment is a frequently used intervention. The rationale for prescribing adaptive equipment is that it maximises a client's functional potential, allows for independence in activities of daily living and fosters confidence as a result of being able to accomplish such tasks. All studies that surveyed compliance with prescribed adaptive equipment between 1963 and 1996 were reviewed. The factors that reportedly affect compliance by individuals can be considered under five discrete categories: medical-related, client-related, equipment-related, assessment-related and training-related. On the basis of the findings of this literature review, recommendations are made for further research, specifically investigating methods that therapists could incorporate into current practice to address the problem of non-compliance with prescribed adaptive equipment.

Activities of Daily Living Performance and Acute Care Occupational Therapy Utilization: Moderating Factors

2022 ◽  
Vol 76 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam R. Kinney ◽  
James E. Graham ◽  
Rayyan Bukhari ◽  
Amanda Hoffman ◽  
Matt P. Malcolm
Keyword(s):  
Occupational Therapy ◽  
Activities Of Daily Living ◽  
Acute Care ◽  
Daily Living ◽  
Sociodemographic Factors ◽  
Insurance Type ◽  
Therapy Services ◽  
To Receive ◽  
Adl Performance ◽  
Therapy Treatment

Importance: Hospitalized patients who have difficulty performing activities of daily living (ADLs) benefit from occupational therapy services; however, disparities in access to such services are understudied. Objective: To investigate whether need (i.e., limited ADL performance) predicts acute care occupational therapy utilization and whether this relationship differs across sociodemographic factors and insurance type. Design: A secondary analysis of electronic health records data. Logistic regression models were specified to determine whether ADL performance predicted use of occupational therapy treatment. Interactions were included to investigate whether the relationship between ADL performance and occupational therapy utilization varied across sociodemographic factors (e.g., age) and insurance type. Participants: A total of 56,022 adults admitted to five regional hospitals between 2014 and 2018 who received an occupational therapy evaluation. Intervention: None. Outcomes and Measures: Occupational therapy service utilization, Activity Measure for Post-Acute Care “6-Clicks” measure of daily activity. Results: Forty-four percent of the patients evaluated for occupational therapy received treatment. Patients with lower ADL performance were more likely to receive occupational therapy treatment; however, interaction terms indicated that, among patients with low ADL performance, those who were younger, were White and non-Hispanic, had significant others, and had private insurance (vs. public) were more likely to receive treatment. These differences were smaller among patients with greater ADL performance. Conclusions and Relevance: Greater need was positively associated with receiving occupational therapy services, but this relationship was moderated by age, minoritized status, significant other status, and insurance type. The findings provide direction for exploring determinants of disparities in occupational therapy utilization. What This Article Adds: Acute care occupational therapy utilization is driven partly by patient need, but potential disparities in access to beneficial services may exist across sociodemographic characteristics and insurance type. Identifying potential determinants of disparities in acute care occupational therapy utilization is the first step in developing strategies to reduce barriers for those in need.

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