Improving Residents\u27 Access to Occupational Therapy Services in Long-Term Care Facilities: A Screen for Declining Performance in Activities of Daily Living

The purpose of this study was to develop a tool for long-term care (LTC) nursing staff and occupational therapy (OT) practitioners to use as a method for tracking LTC residents’ decline in activities of daily living (ADL) performance and overall function. LTC residents with intact cognition were recommended by OT practitioners and verbally recruited to participate in the background interview process. LTC nursing staff interviews were distributed at nursing stations on the LTC units for voluntary participation from nursing staff. OT/OTA interviews were manually distributed to OT practitioners. The interviews used for each population varied slightly to accommodate their role in the project. Responses from LTC residents, LTC nursing staff, and OT practitioner interviews were summarized to determine the results of the background interviews. Only one LTC nursing staff member viewed the educational modules and provided feedback through the survey link. None of the LTC nursing staff or OT practitioners implemented the ADL Screen for LTC Residents over the final five weeks of the project in which it was available. The goal of this project was to develop a screen for LTC nursing staff and OT practitioners as a method to track progressing functional decline in ADL performance among LTC residents. Alternative methods should be utilized to encourage increased utilization of the screen and participation from LTC nursing staff