I am not sure about everyone else, but there does not seem to be enough hours in the day in the month of March! After a very busy two weeks, my schedule is becoming almost manageable, to a certain extent, fingers crossed, I think. One positive event on my agenda is placing a broad smile on my face to welcome first day of spring, which is tomorrow and waving goodbye to winter.
The month of April, OT Month in the States, is fast approaching, and I am eager to learn what will be done by occupational therapy practitioners and our organizations to celebrate the month. There seems to be a certain amount of build up and the excitement is palpable.
Here are some interesting finds in the areas of occupational therapy, research, and in general.
Occupational Therapy
Oklahoma: Aging in place could take off again as the pandemic wanes (oklahoman.com) When your daughter is an occupational therapist, you get a ramp that is not only functional, but also aesthetically pleasing. The Aging in Place movement is making a clear path towards the skills of occupational therapy practitioners and it is great to see the publicity increasing, especially during this time where everyone is staying safe at home.
Virtual Happy Hour Osborne – ACRM Addressing the Needs of Individuals with Stroke during the Transition from Hospital to Home through Problem-Solving TrainingWith guest speaker, Candice L. Osborne, PhD, MPH, OTR. Research has shown that clients post stroke have difficulty transitioning from the hospital to the community setting. This s a great webinar to learn how to assist with that transition. Great for home health therapists.
AOTA E.K. Wise Scholarship: Building a Diverse Occupational Therapy Workforce – AOTA Occupational therapy education can be costly. Reviewing options to fund your education is pivotal to make certain you can cover the cost of school.
Call for Papers | WFOT International Congress 2022 (wfotcongress2022.org) The WFOT Congress 2022 Programme Committee is in Paris, France in 2022. The Congress theme ‘Occupational R-Evolution’ will explore the continuing advancements in occupational therapy. This is an international conference and will be held in-person and online.
Neurodiversity Celebration Week 2021 | Neurodiversity (neurodiversity-celebration-week.com) Normalizing diverse abilities is important with assisting our clients understand that there are others who have triumphed despite being differently abled.
Research
“Caregiver perspectives of home training for pediatric feeding delays” by K. Megan Carpenter and Mindy Garfinkel (wmich.edu) Feeding is an area that requires parental support. While therapists work with pediatric clients for 30-60 minutes a few times per week, the caregivers work the rest of the time to support what the therapist started. What are the caregiver’s perspectives with this important treatment area?
Implications for Occupational Therapy Student Stress, Well-Being, and Coping: A Scoping Review (eku.edu) I am always in awe of the level of stress today’s students encounter in their educational career. What can educators do to assist with decreasing stress in the academic setting?
Current Issue Table of Contents: Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (archives-pmr.org) Always excited for current journal issues! The article below on eye-hand coordination is one of the many open access articles that are available in this issue!
Rapid Yet Thorough Bedside Assessment of Eye-Hand Coordination – Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (archives-pmr.org) This is a 5-page reference that is filled with a wealth of information. Think about the information one’s eye-hand coordination provides on the neurological system (and to a certain extent the musculoskeletal system). This resources summarizes the implications and provides concrete methods of testing. A must have on every therapist’s clipboard.
Sexuality Within Occupational Therapy Education: Assessing Faculty and Student Perceived Competence (eku.edu) The statistics from this study was not what I expected, but still interesting.
Potpourri
What Is Disabled Motherhood Like? | A Cup of Jo This was an interesting read. As an OT, I could count on one hand (literally as a fieldwork student decades ago, just one client and none thereafter) where I had to address meeting the needs of a mother that was disabled. In most curriculum, we always look at parenting after a medical condition changes the ability to perform parental roles. This is interesting to see the needs and abilities of an individual that was disabled prior to becoming a parent.
Lexi’s Clean Kitchen | Carrot Cake Baked Oats Eating clean is better accomplished by someone else doing the work of recipe development.
10 Thrillers Based on Real-Life Events (publishersweekly.com) I read The Perfect Nanny not knowing this was loosely based on a true story. The other books were also a surprise to me.
Regular tea drinking linked to better heart health – Harvard Health Tea and coffee. The research is clear that these are needed in our lives!
How Children Read Differently From Books vs. Screens – The New York Times (nytimes.com) The difference is interesting and can also impact the way we approach technology use in occupational therapy intervention with the pediatric population.
OT Research Corner 