Occupational Therapy Program Student Theses, Dissertations and Capstones
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Occupational Therapy
Copyright Statement
All rights reserved. This publication is intended for use solely by faculty, students, and staff of Nova Southeastern University. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, now known or later developed, including but not limited to photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author or the publisher.
Department
College of Health Care Sciences – Occupational Therapy Department
First Advisor
Catherine Pierce
Publication Date / Copyright Date
2015
Publisher
Nova Southeastern University
NSUWorks Citation
Terrianne Jones. 2015. Participatory Action Research to Improve Caregiver Education based on Cognitive Performance Test Results for Persons with Alzheimer's Disease or Mild Cognitive Impairments. Doctoral dissertation. Nova Southeastern University. Retrieved from NSUWorks, College of Health Care Sciences – Occupational Therapy Department. (33)
https://nsuworks.nova.edu/hpd_ot_student_dissertations/33.
Abstract
The aim of this study was to make changes to how occupational therapists in a transitional care unit setting provide education about Cognitive Performance Test (CPT) scores to caregivers of those patients with dementia or suspected dementia. Caregiver education for this population is important, as the incidence of persons living with Alzheimer's disease and other dementias is expected to grow dramatically in the coming two decades. This study used a Participatory Action Research (PAR) approach to gather input from occupational therapists and caregivers of patients evaluated with the CPT. Interviews of caregivers indicated that they were unhappy with the education they received from therapists. Caregivers wanted a more collaborative relationship with therapists, and were sensitive to the experience of their loved one in occupational therapy in general, as well as to the approach to the education and the tone and language used to convey information about CPT scores. Therapists, with the caregiver input, worked together to develop education that reflected the needs of the caregivers, creating a new process, new tools and more opportunities for therapist- caregiver interactions. Interviews with a second group of caregivers who experienced the new education process revealed that they had a different, more positive experience overall with the new caregiver education process. This finding suggests that PAR as a methodology is well suited to facilitate changes to support development of client centered occupational therapy practice.
Disciplines
Occupational Therapy
Keywords
Psychology, Health and environmental sciences, Caregiver, Client-centered, Dementia, Education, Participatory, Qualitative