Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

The Perceived Effects Of Occupational Therapy Interventions For Those Who Recently Transitioned From Homelessness To Permanent Housing, Sydney Krol, Madison Muir, Katie Johnson, Kristin Hazlett, Kaelyn Hughs

Community Based

OBJECTIVE. The study's objective was to examine the perceived effects of occupational therapy services for families who have recently transitioned to permanent housing from a period of homelessness.

METHOD. The study used a qualitative research design. One family received occupational therapy interventions administered by occupational therapy student researchers. Exit interview was audio recorded and transcribed.Themes and codes were derived from the transcription.

RESULTS. Three themes and seven codes were identified, which encompassed the participants perception of the intervention. The themes were lifestyle transformation, mindset development, and client centered care. The codes were organization and planning, roles and routines, goal progression, …

Older Adults’ Perspectives On Occupational Supports In Alternative Housing Communities, A'Via Coleman, Lisa Goolsby, Kara Lurvey, Elizabeth Von Achen, Heather Veverica

Older Adult

The Problem: Many older adults in the United States wish to age in place but may find their current living environment is not suitable as they age. Alternative housing supports may improve the ability of older adults to live in their own home and community safely while performing necessary occupations.

The Resolution: Alternative housing communities offer a variety of supports that older adults value having access to, even if they are not always utilized including transportation, social interaction, volunteer opportunities, home maintenance, an accessible location, and the togetherness of community.

Association Between Patient Ability In Activities Of Daily Living At Hospital Admission And Key Indicators, Stephanie Rosen, Amber Steele

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Background: Illness and inactivity in the hospital frequently leads to disability that can reduce quality of life and increase costs. Early identification of people with limitations in activities of daily living (ADL) who are at risk for poor outcomes such as increased length of stay (LOS), hospital acquired conditions (i.e., falls and pressure injuries (PIs)), and discharge away from home can facilitate appropriate intervention. The Activity Measure for Post-Acute Care Inpatient Activity Short Form (AM-PAC IASF), a reliable and valid tool to measure ADL limitations, is scored at admission for all patients in our hospital. The purpose of this study …

Creating Focused Occupational Therapy Interventions For Clients With Heart Failure In Skilled Nursing Facilities, In Hwa Chae, Camille Marcia Schilling, Elena Ruth Vaccaro

Occupational Therapy | Graduate Capstone Projects

The ultimate goal of the SNF is to help clients stabilize their medical conditions and attain their therapy goals so that they can return home (Orr, Boxer, Dolansky, Allen, & Forman, 2016). However, approximately 27% of heart failure (HF) clients are readmitted to the hospital after being discharged from the SNF (Allen et al., 2011). High readmission rates may be due to the cognitive (Dickson, Tkacs, and Riegel, 2007), psychosocial (Halliday, 2010), and lifestyle barriers (Maeda, Shen, Schwarz, Farrell, & Mallon, 2013) HF clients face. However, interventions in the SNF tend to emphasize activities of daily living (ADLs) and therapeutic …

Animal-Assisted Therapy And Quality Of Life In Patients With Dementia, Karissa D. Thomson

Student Capstone Papers

The aim of this quantitative study was to examine the effects animal-assisted therapy (AAT) had on people diagnosed with dementia living in a nursing home. The study aimed to examine the effects AAT had on depression, blood pressure, social interaction, and how these factors impact quality of life (QOL). The study was conducted once a week for one hour on Thursdays for 6 weeks. 7 participants were included in the study and further broken down into two groups based upon their level of cognition as measured by the Mini-Mental Status Examination. Beck’s Depression Inventory (BDI) and the World Health Organization …

Occupational Therapy's Role In Pain Management Using Virtual Reality, Johnathan Quach

Student Capstone Papers

Pain is a complex phenomenon that affects millions every day and is frequently associated with activity restriction and decreases in psycho-social health. Studies have shown that opioids alone cannot eliminate all the difficulties that are associated with chronic pain, demonstrating a dire need to consider safer and more effective alternatives. Furthermore, given the impact of chronic pain on an individual’s ability to perform valued activities, and therefore overall well-being and quality of life, occupational therapy must be considered an essential member of any pain management team. Thus, there may be potential benefits to reviewing the use of virtual reality (VR) …

Perceived Impact Of Non-Contact Boxing On Daily Life And Occupational Participation At Home Among Individuals With Parkinson's Disease, Kristen E. Bignal

Student Capstone Papers

The aim of this project was to determine whether individuals with Parkinson's disease perceive an impact on their daily life and occupational participation at home secondary to participation in non-contact boxing.

Semi-structured open-ended interview questions were conducted with 17 participants (3 female) who have been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease for(i.e., self-care, home and health maintenance, sleep, intimacy, social and leisure interests, etc.) in the home environment. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed utilizing thematic analysis.

Data analysis derived three overarching themes including psychological benefits, sense of community, and framework to develop routines. Subsequent research exploring how non-contact boxing directly impacts specific …

Developing Educational Resources To Support The Use Of The Hippotherapy Evaluation And Assessment Tool, Emily Peoples

Student Capstone Papers

The Hippotherapy Evaluation and Assessment Tool (HEAT) was created in 2011 with the goal of creating an assessment specific to this therapeutic intervention and effectively tracking client progress. Based on the current literature of client progress during hippotherapy intervention, four domains of scoring were created: Static Posture, Dynamic Motor Behavior, Sensory Processing, and Psychosocial/Behavioral. Over the years, many thesis studies have been conducted to confirm the reliability and validity of the HEAT. However, further dissemination was required as many therapists had not yet heard of the tool. A doctoral capstone project was completed in 2019-2020 to create a training program …

Inclusion In Religion And Spirituality For Children With Special Needs, Mackinzie C. Weiss

Student Capstone Papers

The proposed vision of this capstone project will focus on using occupational therapy interventions to help a local church be more inclusive to children and families with special needs. This capstone project will partner with a pre-existing special needs program to develop evidence based volunteer training, implement a parent respite program, and introduce a movement based program.

Demonstrating The Role Of Occupational Therapy In Hospice Care Through Fall Prevention Intervention Program Development, Lauren Schar

OTD Capstone Projects

Demonstrating the Role of Occupational Therapy in Hospice Care through Fall Prevention Intervention Program Development

Bringing An Occupational Therapy Perspective To Linden Waldorf School, Morgan Craig

OTD Capstone Projects

Through this project, an occupational therapy doctoral student brought an occupational therapy perspective to Linden Waldorf School and provided the school with direct observations, educational presentations, and various educational materials on the topics of fine motor development, sensory processing, and behavior management in order to help empower Waldorf faculty and staff to best meet the needs of their students.

Aota Continuing Education: Occupational Therapy’S Role In Addressing Sexuality And Intimacy, Tiffany E. Lee, Jacqueline M. Marquez

OTD Capstone Projects

The purpose of this capstone project was to create a continuing education course for the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) on the topic of OT’s role in addressing sexuality and intimacy. The topic of sexuality and intimacy is often under-addressed by healthcare professionals, despite its importance to clients. According to the Occupational Therapy Practice Framework, engagement in sexual activity is not only an ADL, but can be a key aspect of social participation in the context of familial and peer/ friend roles. Therefore, it is well within OT’s scope of practice to address sexuality and intimacy with clients. However, there …

An Exploration Of Financial Management Programming For Residents In One Homeless Shelter: A Qualitative Institutional Case Study, Amy M. Heiser

Occupational Therapy Doctorate Capstone Projects

Introduction: Homelessness affects the economy, societies, and individuals’ physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Occupational therapy is a holistic profession that works with all populations across the lifespan. Financial management is a life skill that many Americans struggle with. Evidence on financial management skill development within homeless shelters and occupational therapy is sparse. Occupational justice is a theoretical framework that supports the right for residents in a homeless shelter to have direct interventions toward skill development, such as education in financial management. Methods: This institutional case study explored a homeless shelter to gain knowledge of real-life program phenomena, with focus on …

Experience Of Play Participation And Use Of Lower Extremity Orthoses In Children With Cerebral Palsy: Case Study, Lakyn Elizabeth Jolly-Burchell

Online Theses and Dissertations

This case study sought to understand the experience of a single family of a child with cerebral palsy (CP) using lower extremity orthoses (LEOs) in natural play contexts. CP is the most commonly occurring motor disability in childhood. Associated with CP, impairments in functional mobility, spasticity, varying degrees of muscle tone, ROM, and impaired gross and fine motor control are barriers to meaningful play experiences in this population. LEOs are widely prescribed devices for children with CP, used as walking aids and to improve/offset some of these performance deficits and body structures. Although, the true efficacy of LEOs is yet …

The Impact Of Occupational Therapy Acute Care Services On Readmission Rates For Patients In Medicare’S Hospital Readmission Reduction Program, Jessica M. Edelstein

Theses and Dissertations

The United States (US) health care system is faced with the daunting challenge to make healthcare payments commensurate with quality of care provided. To assess quality, metrics for reimbursement have been established by Medicare. One such quality metric is hospital readmissions (readmissions). Readmissions are associated with poor patient outcomes and costly. Associated poor patient outcomes include higher risk for mortality, deconditioning, nutritional issues and cognitive impairments. As a result, readmissions cost Medicare $26 billion annually. Current strategies for reducing readmissions in the US are fragmented and hospital-specific. While specific strategies may vary, hospitals that have low readmissions rates tend to …