The Role of Occupational Therapy in Rural Healthcare: A Case Study on Farmers with Disabilities

The impact of disability on farmers' personal affairs and work capacity has consequences not only on farmers, but also on their families, farm operations, and communities. Living in a rural area can play a role in recovery after disease or injury in that beneficial therapy services may not be available due to barriers such as meeting the needs of a widespread population, lack of physician referral, and travel time. To gain the perspective of the impact of disability on farmers' lives, face-to-face interviews were conducted with two farmers in rural Nebraska. Through these discussions five similar themes emerged which include: adaptations, safety, family assistance, therapy services, and specialty services