Occupational Therapy Commons^™

Addressing Opioid Misuse And Abuse Through Interprofessional Engagement And Education, Marta J. Brooks, Suzanne E. Holm, Shelene Thomas, Amy J. Rich

Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice

Purpose: The purpose of this initiative was to develop and implement an interprofessional panel aimed to expose a university audience to the magnitude of opioid misuse and abuse, as well as demonstrate each health professional’s role in curbing the epidemic. Further, this experience was to provide a platform for interprofessional discussion and to share with attendees tangible action items to begin combatting the opioid epidemic.

Methods: An interdisciplinary committee of healthcare professionals collaborated to initiate a dialogue around opioid misuse and abuse to highlight the power of interprofessional (IP) collaboration in addressing the opioid epidemic. Each panel member shared …

Education On Fall Prevention To Improve Self-Efficacy Of Nursing Staff In Long Term Care: A Pilot Study, Mark D. Leverenz, Jennifer Lape

Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice

Purpose: Fall prevention is an ongoing concern in long-term care. Self-efficacy of nursing staff affects their performance levels related to fall prevention. Research concerning falls in the elderly is plentiful but there are no published studies addressing self-efficacy of nursing staff for implementation of fall prevention strategies in long-term care. The authors hypothesize that fall prevention education by an occupational therapist would be effective to improve the self-efficacy of nursing staff for implementation of fall prevention strategies and self-efficacy to prevent resident falls.

Method: A pre-test post-test pilot study implementing a five-week, multifaceted, fall prevention education course was conducted by …

An Inpatient Rehabilitation Interprofessional Care Pathway For Traumatic Hip Fracture: A Pilot Quality Improvement Project, Sarah Plante

DNP Scholarly Projects

Background: Each year over 300,000 older adults are hospitalized for hip fracture. The impact of the cost of hip fracture on the US health care system is estimated to be as high as $9 billion, with the typical cost of a hip fracture episode around $30,000. Formalized pathways have been developed and successfully utilized for many patient presentations, including hip fracture, in the acute setting. Although this research is important to the comprehensive care of the elderly hip fracture patient, very little research exists that outlines evidence-based best-practice for patients in the post-acute recovery period.

Purpose: The primary aim of …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Abilities Care Approach™ Training, Michelle E. D'Amato, Sophie E. Miller, April Perez, Carmen Joaquin, Louiza Alexandria Villarina

Student Research Posters

Approximately 50% of US nursing home residents have a diagnosis of dementia. Abilities Care Approach® was created by occupational therapists (OTs) to promote quality dementia care for residents in skilled nursing facilities (SNFs). Certified nursing assistants (CNAs) are often the primary caregiver for residents with dementia. To ensure carryover of ACA principles, ACE dementia training was targeted towards CNAs. The purpose of this study was to evaluate Abilities Care Experts®(ACE) training program which provides CNAs with an occupation-based dementia care approach by focusing on the importance of occupational engagement and knowledge of dementia stages. Results indicated that ACE trained CNAs …

Impacts Of Exercise On Functional Ability Of Recovering Gbs Patients: An Integrative Literature Review, Yasmin Sheriff

Grace Peterson Nursing Research Colloquium

This integrative literature review aimed to investigate the impacts exercise has on functional ability of GBS patients in recovery.

Interprofessional Grand Rounds: Student Hotspotting Team 2016-2017, Caroline Komanecky, Peter Sacci, Danielle Mcfadden, Nuriya Neumann, Michaela Scotten, Melissa Murphy

Department of Occupational Therapy Posters and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Strategies To Improve Interdisciplinary Communication In An Acute Care Inpatient Pediatric Unit, Sarah Thompson, Haley Pelletier, Barbara Bush Children's Hospital-Inpatient, Maine Medical Center, Suneela Nayak, Ruth Hanselman, Stephen Tyzik

MaineHealth Maine Medical Center

Interdisciplinary patient rounding has been shown to improve patient and family satisfaction as well as reduce patient length of stay and readmission rates. In an acute care inpatient pediatric unit, baseline metrics demonstrated that 100% of the time, nursing was not included in these rounds thus resulting in sub optimal communication.

The goal of this performance improvement project was to attain increased nursing participation. Data collection demonstrated several reasons for lack of participation and corrective actions were instituted. After undertaking this KPI goal and utilizing operational excellence, 95% of the time, nurses were called to morning rounds with the medical …

Delirium Reduction Strategies For The Critically Ill, June Chaves, Sam Canonico, Will Cheney, Tammy Corey, Gil Fraser, Alex Kowalewski, Jen Low, Cardiac Intensive Care Unit, Haley Pelletier, Cathy Palleschi, Stephen Tyzik, Suneela Nayak, Ruth Hanselman

MaineHealth Maine Medical Center

Delirium, an acute and fluctuating disturbance of consciousness and cognition, is a common manifestation of acute brain dysfunction in critically ill patients. Patients with delirium have longer hospital stays and a lower 6-month survival rate than do patients without delirium. Preliminary research suggests that delirium may be associated with cognitive impairment that persists months to years after discharge.

In a large acute care hospital, the cardiac intensive care staff became interested in mitigating their unit’s high delirium rate of ventilated patients. At baseline, many members of the healthcare team did not believe that delirium could be prevented and the predominant …

Patient Fall Prevention, R9 West Cardiovascular, Cathy Palleschi, Suneela Nayak, Ruth Hanselman, Stephen Tyzik

MaineHealth Maine Medical Center

PATIENT FALL PREVENTION STRATEGIES IN AN ACUTE HOSPITAL

Every year in the United States, hundreds of thousands of patients fall resulting in injury. Injured patients often require prolonged hospital stays and a resultant increase in medical costs.

The purpose of this study was to identify the current state of fall prevention strategies on a hospital inpatient acute care cardiac unit. Through a root cause analysis, some deficiencies were identified and a process improvement plan was implemented.

Several positive outcomes were attained as a result of the countermeasures initiated. Patient falls per month and total waste in dollars saw a decline …

Identification Strategies For The Very High Fall Risk Patient In An Acute Inpatient Psychiatric Unit, P6 Inpatient Geri-Med Psychiatry, Haley Pelletier, Suneela Nayak, Stephen Tyzik, Ruth Hanselman

MaineHealth Maine Medical Center

Patients falling as a result of geriatric and psychiatric impairments are at a much higher risk than the average patient population. An acute care inpatient psychiatric team used baseline metrics to demonstrate increasing fall rates per month that surpassed the unit’s target number. As a result, a quality improvement project around falls was felt to be warranted.

The overall goal of this study was to improve patient safety by reducing falls for their very high risk fall population. A root cause analysis determined that this population was not being properly identified and several tools were developed and employed to better …

Implementing The Weefim System In Outpatient Pediatric Rehabilitation, Chelsea Ratilainen

Master's Projects and Capstones

Abstract

This project was designed to achieve an unmet criteria in the accreditation process for the outpatient pediatric rehabilitation program at a local, community hospital in the greater Bay Area. The clients range from 6 months old to 20 years old with functional disabilities. The Commission of Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) requires that applicants demonstrate outcome measure data over a 6 month time period. During the self-evaluation process this was noted to be a deficiency in the department’s efforts. The WeeFIM system was chosen as the first tool to implement in the department. This is a functional improvement measurement …

Interprofessional Collaboration To Support Children With Diabetes, Katie M. Polo, Susan M. Cahill

The Open Journal of Occupational Therapy

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate school nurses’ perspectives related to interprofessional collaboration to support health promotion and development of self-management skills of students with diabetes.

Method: A link to an on-line survey was sent to 312 school nurses. The survey included 11 items pertaining to the nurses’ perceptions.

Results: The majority of the respondents (91.8%, n = 56) reported that instruction and maintenance of diabetes self-management skills would benefit from an interprofessional team. Few of the respondents (20.8%, n = 11) identified occupational therapy practitioners as possible collaborators. Nearly two-thirds (62.7%, n = 37) of the …

Effect Of Life Review On Quality Of Life For Older Adults Living In Nursing Homes, Rene' Wren

Occupational Therapy Collection

Aim: To examine the effects of life review on daily activities, social participation, outlook on life, and perceptions of living in a nursing home measured by life satisfaction and quality of life in older adults.

Method: The study design was a two-phase quasi-experimental pre-post-tests including development and testing of a life review protocol. Nine residents, age ≥65, participated in a life review group once weekly for 6 weeks. Outcomes were analyzed using the Life Satisfaction Index-Z (LSI-Z) and pre-post surveys.

Results: LSI-Z scores improved post-intervention and survey outcomes indicated participation in activities of daily living (ADLs), socialization, …

Generation Y Health Professional Students’ Preferred Teaching And Learning Approaches: A Systematic Review, Caroline Mary Hills, Tracy Levett-Jones, Samuel Lapkin, Helen Warren-Forward

The Open Journal of Occupational Therapy

Generation Y or Millennials are descriptors for those born between 1982 and 2000. This cohort has grown up in the digital age and is purported to have different learning preferences from previous generations. Students are important stakeholders in identifying their preferred teaching and learning approaches in health professional programs. This study aimed to identify, appraise, and synthesize the best available evidence regarding the teaching and learning preferences of Generation Y health professional students. The review considered any objectively measured or self-reported outcomes of teaching and learning reported from Generation Y health professional student perspectives. In accordance with a previously published …

The Secret Ingredient For Improving Infant/Child Mental Health: Teaching Parents To Play, Geraldine Healy Marini

Occupational Therapy Doctorate Capstone Projects

Disorders in mental health are the highest of all disorders and results in the most common form of disability. Since 2011, mental health disorders have increased at alarming rates. It is estimated that 9.5 to 14.2% of children between the ages of 0 to 5 years have and emotional or behavioral problem. The mental health of parents or caregivers can affect and impact the development of young children (Nelson & Mann, 2011, Zero to Three, 2004).

The over arching goal of this research is to explore issues of mental health within parent-child interactions. Coaching parents during the co-occupation of play …

Self-Care Project For Faculty And Staff Of Future Health Care Professionals: Case Report, Nancy Macrae, Kelley Strout

Occupational Therapy Faculty Publications

Self-care among health care providers is an important component of their ability to provide quality health care to patients. Health care institutions have programs in place for students that emphasize health and wellness, but few programs are available for faculty and staff. To address this gap and facilitate modeling health and wellness strategies for students, a New England institution that educates health care practitioners began a pilot self-care project for faculty and staff. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected. The template used for this project could be used as a stepping-stone for future wellness self-care program in higher education …

Interprofessional Collaboration Between Occupational Therapists And Nurses In An Acute Care Setting: An Exploratory Study, Bethany Loy, Holly Micheff, Kelly Nguyen, Vincent O'Brien

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

Background. Collaboration between occupational therapists and nurses is key to a positive prognosis for their patients. Currently, there is a gap in the research on professional relationships between occupational therapists and registered nurses in acute care settings.

Purpose. To examine interprofessional collaboration between registered nurses and occupational therapy in an acute care setting.

Methods. A phenomenological, qualitative design with use of semi-structured interviews was used. Interviewees were four occupational therapists and four registered nurses who currently work in acute care settings in Northern California and were recruited through a snowball, convenience and purposive sampling. Themes and subthemes that emerged from …

The Use Of Pbl In An Interprofessional Education Course For Health Care Professional Students, Kristine M. L'Ecuyer, David Pole, Sheila A. Leander

Interdisciplinary Journal of Problem-Based Learning

A problem-based learning (PBL) framework was utilized in a series of six interprofessional team seminars (IPTS) for postbaccalaureate students from seven health professions. The goal of IPTS was to develop a collaborative practice-ready workforce prepared to respond to patient care needs through use of concrete examples, skills development, critical thinking, and problem solving in safe, faculty-facilitated small groups. The collaborative nature of PBL closely correlates with teaching methodologies of the IPTS series. This study analyzed critical reflection assignments of nursing students in accelerated programs to determine the effectiveness of IPTS at preparing students for interprofessional collaborative practice. Findings indicated that …

Interprofessional Collaboration Between Occupational Therapists And Registered Nurses In Acute Care Settings: An Exploratory Study, Vincent P. O'Brien, Bethany J. Loy, Kelly Nguyen, Holly Micheff

Student Research Posters

Background. Collaboration between occupational therapists and nurses is key to a positive prognosis for their patients. Currently, there is a gap in the research on professional relationships between occupational therapists and registered nurses in acute care settings. Purpose. To examine interprofessional collaboration between registered nurses and occupational therapy in an acute care setting. Methods. A phenomenological, qualitative design with use of semi-structured interviews was used. Interviewees were four occupational therapists and four registered nurses who currently work in acute care settings in Northern California and were recruited through a snowball, convenience and purposive sampling. Themes and subthemes …

An Interprofessional Falls Assessment Clinic Model To Develop Collaborative Team Skills Among Health Professional Students, Tracey Vause-Earland, Ms, Otr/L, Leigh Ann Hewston, Pt, Med, Cecilia Borden, Edd, Msn, Brooke Salzman, Md, Emily Hajjar, Pharmd, Ellen Furman, Msw, Christine Hsieh, Md, Susan Parks, Md

Department of Occupational Therapy Posters and Presentations

BACKGROUND

• Older adults are at increased risk for falls and fall related injuries, leading to loss of independence, disability, and increased mortality.
• Preventing injury and falls is a national Healthy People 2010 objective. However, physicians and other health professionals frequently fail to incorporate known evidence into usual care. Screening for falls is not consistently performed as an essential assessment in older adults by primary care providers.
• Multidisciplinary assessment can be an important component in preventing falls in community dwelling adults.
• In new practice models, such as the Chronic Care Model, there is an emphasis on interdisciplinary collaboration, however health professions …

Promoting Client Goal Ownership In A Clinical Setting, Laura H. Vanpuymbrouck

The Open Journal of Occupational Therapy

Effective goal setting involves collaboration between the client and therapist and is an important component of occupational therapy practice. However, encouraging involvement and collaboration does not necessarily guarantee that client goals are incorporated into the treatment plan. The purpose of this innovative treatment program was to determine if providing a client with a venue for goal identification, documentation, and maintenance might impact participation and satisfaction in a day rehabilitation setting. Responses to a study satisfaction survey (Ss) were taken at baseline and immediately postintervention from the experimental (N = 11) and control (N = 10) groups and attendance rates were …

A Transformative Experience For Occupational Therapy Students In A Simulated Learning Environment, Kitsum Li, Barbara Mccamish

Collected Faculty Scholarship

Simulation is being integrated into nursing and medical curriculum nationally and it is well integrated into the Nursing program at Dominican University of California, However, use of simulation in allied health professionals is only an emerging practice. The aim of this program is to integrate simulation into the OT curriculum in order to facilitate the development of therapy foundation skill.

An Organization-Wide Service Improvement Approach, Jennifer Jasmine Arfaa, Phd, Mhsa, Cynthia Line, Phd, Nora Kramer, Msn, Rn, Karen Montoro, Rn, Richard D. Blob,, Maria Francesco, Jaime Stazi, Rn, Elisabeth Kunkel, Md, Susan Krekun, Md, Lizanne Mason, Rn, Kathy Evans, Rn, Lorraine Weikel, Rn, Ann D. Clark, Ms, Otr/L, Ray Wisniewski, Teresa Heavens

Department of Nursing papers and presentations

APPROACH TO PROBLEM SOLVING

High priority index questions from HCAHPS and Press Ganey surveys, including overall ratings, communication with RNs and MDs, hospital environment and response to concerns and complaints, were targeted for improvement. These high priority indices served as the basis for redesigning Patient Services using a multi-faceted approach to improve patients’ experiences.

At Thomas Jefferson University Hospital (TJUH), high performance on the Patient Experiences of Care Survey has been driven by a successful multi-tiered approach to patient services:

·Hospital leadership guided and implemented new approaches to ensure excellence in patient services is an ever-present and obtainable goal

·Physician …

Service Learning In Guatemala: Using Qualitative Content Analysis To Explore An Interdisciplinary Learning Experience Among Students In Health Care Professional Programs, Kathleen S. Fries, Donna M. Bowers, Margo Gross, Lenore Frost

Nursing Faculty Publications

What is the experience of interprofessional collaboration as a nursing, occupational, or physical therapy health care student taking part in a weeklong service-learning experience? Interprofessional collaboration among health care professionals yields improved patient outcomes, yet many students in health care programs have limited exposure to interprofessional collaboration in the classroom and in clinical and service-learning experiences. This practice gap implies that students enter their professions without valuing interprofessional collaboration and the impact it has on promoting positive patient outcomes.

The aim of this study was to describe the interprofessional experiences of students in health care professional programs as they collaborated …

Adolescents’ Lived Experiences During Treatment Of Cancer And Impact On Social Participation, Gary Grimaldi

Occupational Therapy Program Student Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

This phenomenological study was designed to understand the lived experience of adolescents being treating for cancer and the impact of their lived experience on engagement in occupations and social participation. Participants in this study included four young adolescents 17-19 years of ages attending school on a part-time basis. They were on active treatment protocols for cancer and enjoyed participating in sports or other activities with friends. In-depth structured interviews with questions to illuminate the impact of cancer treatment on social participation were completed and audio recorded. Data analysis was completed utilizing a phenomenological reduction method to determine emerging themes and …

Handbook On Sensitive Practice For Health Care Practitioners: Lessons From Adult Survivors Of Childhood Sexual Abuse, Candice L. Schachter, Carol A. Stalker, Eli Teram, Gerri C. Lasiuk, Alanna Danilkewich

Lyle S. Hallman Social Work Faculty Publications

This handbook is the culmination of a multiphase, multidisciplinary research project that used grounded theory and participatory action research to illuminate ways that healthcare providers can work sensitively (in a trauma-informed way) with adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse.

The research identified nine Principles of Sensitive Practice: respect, rapport, taking time, sharing information and control, respecting boundaries, fostering mutual learning, understanding non-linear healing and demonstrating an understanding of trauma to patients. Specific guidelines were developed for a wide variety of issues pertinent to clinical practice such as, removal of clothing, touch, responding to disclosures of abuse, managing triggers among others. …