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BACKGROUND: People with chronic pain may seek rehabilitation to reduce pain and restore productivity and valued roles. Theoretically, a biopsychosocial approach makes rehabilitation more meaningful, however, the limited research on meaningful rehabilitation predominantly describes the perspective of therapists and researchers. The client's perspective of meaningfulness in rehabilitation is lacking. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the experience of meaningfulness in rehabilitation from the perspective of people with chronic pain. METHODS: Qualitative, semi-structured interviews were conducted with Australian adults who had chronic pain and recent experience of occupational therapy or physiotherapy. Sampling continued until thematic saturation occurred. Transcripts were coded and analyzed using theory-driven and data-driven thematic analysis. RESULTS: Ten participants (four males; six females) were interviewed. Pain histories ranged from nine months to 20+ years, with conditions such as fibromyalgia or trauma. Three themes from a prior concept analysis were upheld, and a further three data-driven themes emerged. Results indicate that people with chronic pain seek a "genuine connection"; from a therapist who is "credible"; and can become a "guiding partner", and they find rehabilitation meaningful when it holds "personal value"; is "self-defined"; and relevant to their sense of "self-identity". CONCLUSIONS: The genuine connection and guiding partnership with a credible therapist, that is sought by people with chronic pain, may be at odds with aspects of contemporary rehabilitation. Client-defined meaningfulness is an important construct to engage clients in treatment and improve work and other occupational outcomes for people with chronic pain.

Background and Aim: Sleep insufficiency is often associated with the life of a university student, yet it is well known that inadequate sleep can have a negative impact on physical and mental health and be detrimental to cognitive skills for learning. The aim of this study was to replicate a Canadian study to survey university student sleep practices, the way in which students address any sleep issues, and the students’ preferred method to receive targeted sleep information. Methods: An anonymous on-line survey was promoted to all enrolled students at one Australian University in August 2017. Results: In total, 601 students responded to the survey. One third indicated that they had insufficient sleep (less than 6.5 hrs). Almost two thirds reported a perception of not getting sufficient sleep. There was a significant association between the reported number of sleep hours, and the perception of high-quality sleep. Strategies to get to sleep included the use of social media which is counter to best practice in sleep hygiene. Conclusion: The study supports the need for education about sleep health coupled with stress management to better the demands of student life.

Background: As the problem of chronic pain grows worldwide, rehabilitation is critical to improved patient well-being. There is thus a need for rehabilitation-focused research. It appears that outcomes are improved when patients perceive the rehabilitation process to be meaningful. However, there is no empirical evidence determining how this would be achieved. An important first step is to identify and describe the concept of meaningfulness as it is used in the chronic pain rehabilitation literature. Objective: This paper reports the findings of a structured concept analysis to define meaningfulness from the patient perspective in chronic pain rehabilitation. Methodology: In consultation with a medical librarian, a search strategy was developed and articles retrieved. The Walker and Avant concept analysis method was used to analyze the data, identify the defining attributes of meaningfulness, develop contrary, borderline, and model cases, and identify its antecedents and consequences. Results: The search revealed extensive use of the terms ‘meaningfulness’ and ‘meaningful’ within the chronic pain rehabilitation literature from the healthcare provider and system perspective. However, only ten articles met the inclusion criteria, and used the terms meaningful or meaningfulness from the patients’ perspective. Given the paucity of relevant studies, it was not possible to retrieve a clear definition of meaningfulness specific to the context of chronic pain rehabilitation, nor to identify specific outcome measures used to confirm whether rehabilitation is meaningful for people with chronic pain. Conclusions: There is a worrisome gap in the chronic pain rehabilitation literature regarding the application of the concept of ‘meaningfulness’ as perceived by the patient. This study lays the foundation to further the conceptual clarity required for rigorous research to determine potential benefits of personally meaningful chronic pain rehabilitation. Further work is required to

Transition to practice can be identified as the change from the role of student to the role of practitioner. This period of transition is a time of intense professional and personal development. Typically, it can take anywhere between six months to two years before an entry-level therapist feels competent in the workplace. A number of factors affect the transition process, including role uncertainty, inadequate supervision, and an overall lack of confidence in clinical skills. This paper discusses a case example of a Job Club, provided by a Western Australian Occupational Therapy university program. The concept was initially set up to support students through the process of seeking and gaining employment. Over time, the club developed a broader scope based on the needs of attendees. This example illustrates the needs of students for greater support in this important transition, and lays the groundwork for formal research in future.

Liddiard, K., Batten, R., Wang, Y., Long, K., Wallis, A., & Brown, C. A. (2017). Job club: A program to assist occupational therapy students’ transition to practice. Education Sciences, 7(3), 70. Available here

Batten, R., Liddiard, K., Raynor, A. J., Brown, C. A., Stanley, M. (2020). Cross-sectional survey of sleep practices of Australian university students, Nature and Science of Sleep. 2020(12), 39—48. https://doi.org/10.2147%2FNSS.S221472

Liddiard, K., Raynor, A. J., Rivard, A. M., & Brown, C. A. (2019). Patient-defined meaningfulness within chronic pain rehabilitation: A concept analysis. International Journal of Caring Sciences, 12(2), 832-843. Available here