Bringing Occupation to Long-Term-Care Setting

As a person enters a long-term-care (LTC) facility, they lose their home, independence, possessions and routine (O\u27Sullivanm, 2004). Adopting a meaningful occupational or social role may improve psychological well-being in elders (Keung Yuen, Huang, Burik, & Smith, 2008). There is a need for resources to support the use of occupations as treatment modalities in LTC setting. The purpose of this scholarly project is to address this need. A literature review was conducted using AOTA, AJOT, OT Practice, CINAHL, SCOPUS, and PubMed on topics relating to the populations served in LTC, and types of OT intervention used in LTC. Issues concerning occupation-based treatment, resources and contexts that support occupation-based practice, the Model of Human Occupation (MOHO), and occupation-based assessments were explored. Occupation-based kits were developed to enhance the OT practitioner\u27s ability to provide intervention ideas based on the needs and interests of the client. A manual was developed which provides practitioners with a resource for providing assessment and intervention guided by theory. Two case studies were developed in conjunction with occupation kits to guide the practitioner in appropriate use of the product. The challenge for today\u27s clinician is to encourage meaningful, purposeful occupation while meeting the needs of the health care system such as coping with increasing caseloads and institutional pressures (Rogers, 2007; Zimmerer-Branum & Nelson, 1995). To overcome these barriers, a manual was developed to guide implementation of occupation-based intervention via occupation-based kits. This manual is an organized, easy to use, quick reference tool to enhance clinicians\u27 ability to provide meaningful occupation-based intervention to clients in LTC settings