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Clinicians are increasingly required to work and learn interprofessionally, yet few studies explore the nature of being interprofessional. The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experience of clinicians who identify as interprofessional or have an interprofessional identity. Interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA) was applied as a qualitative research approach and analytical method. Fifteen key informants from a range of professions, settings, and roles were recruited via purposive sampling. Data was collected via semi-structured interviews, observation of participants' day-to-day practice, and review of organizational documents, and analyzed using IPA. Six interdependent Group Experiential Themes were developed: (i) The power of person-centered holistic care, (ii) Learning and growth through curiosity, reflection, and willingness to be vulnerable, (iii) Welcomes, values, and empowers all others, (iv) Trust and mutual respect through belonging and connection, (v) The contribution of background and previous experiences, and (vi) The influence of workplace context. Each Group Experiential Theme had between two and nine sub-themes. Results support the value of understanding and making explicit the concepts that comprise clinician interprofessional identity. The findings can be used to support clinicians, educators, leaders, and policy makers to develop and sustain interprofessional identity, and subsequently cultivate a culture of interprofessional collaborative practice. Future research is needed to further explore the themes, investigate their inter-relationships, and present the concepts that comprise clinician interprofessional identity in a way that is accessible to healthcare professionals and facilitates their integration into practice.

The Hypertonicity Intervention Planning Model (HIPM) is a decision-making aid which guides clinical reasoning in individualizing upper limb (UL) neurorehabilitation. To examine the HIPM's clinical utility across cultures, using therapists' perceptions of its usefulness and challenges when applied in clinical practice. Interpretive description methodology guided qualitative data collection and analysis because it produces clinically practical applications. Forty-four occupational therapists working in Australia or Singapore participated. Three group discussions were conducted using a modified nominal group technique. Three themes were: (1) The HIPM guides systematic clinical decision-making for assessment, goal-setting, and intervention; (2) Utility was influenced by systemic or organizational supports and barriers including availability of time, resources, and funding; organizational readiness to change; multidisciplinary and transorganizational collaboration; (3) Therapists' skills and confidence to apply the HIPM, and openness to changing practice, influenced utility. Therapists strongly support HIPM use for structuring and communicating clinical reasoning in UL neurorehabilitation. However, organizational support is key to optimizing clinical utility. Incorporating decision-making aids into documentation and referral processes may strengthen multidisciplinary and transorganizational teamwork, enhancing clinical use. Different training tiers to suit therapist experience levels, refresher courses, and supplementary resources may improve therapists' skills and confidence, thereby boosting utility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The Student Practice Evaluation Form – Revised Edition (SPEF‐R) was used across Australian universities from 2008 to 2020 to assess occupational therapy student performance on practice placement. Evolution of practice contexts, placement models and professional competency standards prompted updating of the tool. This paper describes the second and final action research cycle in the development of the SPEF‐R2. Methods: Cycle 2 included three phases: (a) piloting of the SPEF‐R2 and post‐pilot survey to determine utility and applicability; (b) post‐pilot focus groups/interviews; and (c) final amendments for publication and launch. Quantitative data were summarised descriptively, and qualitative data were analysed using qualitative content analysis and reported using illustrative quotes. Results: In Phase 1, 23 participants piloted the SPEF‐R2 and completed a post‐pilot survey. Results indicated participants found the SPEF‐R2 relevant to a range of traditional and contemporary settings, easy to understand and an improvement over the previous version of the tool. Most participants found it more concise and less repetitive than the SPEF‐R. Participants particularly valued additions regarding culturally responsive practice, student health and well‐being and reflective practice. In Phase 2, five post‐pilot focus groups/interviews were held, gathering a deeper understanding of its utility. Discussion highlighted desire for an additional core item within the self‐management domain (Domain Two). Increased confidence in rating and provision of feedback on student performance were also evident. Reflection on findings led to final amendments and publication of the SPEF‐R2. Conclusion: Extensive consultation with the occupational therapy community informed the development of the SPEF‐R2, reflecting contemporary practice and meeting the expectations of Australian occupational therapists. Action research was an effective approach to the development of the SPEF‐R2. Use of the manual and training website and support from universities are paramount if practice educators are to use the tool effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Allied health new graduates are entering private practice in increasing numbers despite limited opportunity to experience this setting during training. Exploring strategies used to host students may provide insight into how students can be integrated into practice whilst minimizing disruption to staff, clients, and service delivery. This study aimed to explore actual and potential strategies to integrate students into private practice organizations from the perspective of practices who currently, have previously, and who have never hosted allied health students (n=26) and university clinical education coordinators (n=13). Four themes were generated that encompassed key strategies in hosting allied health students. Allied health private practices and clinical placement coordinators use a range of strategies to integrate students, centering on supporting involvement in client care and steps to minimize disruption to service delivery. Consideration of such strategies may provide avenues for future practice-university partnerships, thereby increasing placement capacity in this sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Appropriate evaluation of health services for First Australians demands culturally responsive goal setting tools that can be used by inter‐professional teams. The Australian Therapy Outcome Measure for Indigenous Clients (ATOMIC) is a purpose‐designed tool for measuring therapy outcomes for First Australians. The aim of this study was to establish the clinical utility of the ATOMIC by investigating its alignment with the practice perspectives of an inter‐professional First Australian health service. Methods: Using action research cycles, 12 occupational therapists and 8 speech pathologists applied two successive versions of the ATOMIC in practice. Focus group feedback after use of the first version (ATOMICv1) prompted adaptations to the tool (ATOMICv2). Therapists participated in four focus groups, two after using ATOMICv1 and two after using ATOMICv2. Focus group transcripts were analysed inductively using a qualitative description approach. Results: Challenges in setting SMART goals early in therapy and defining specific measurement increments in ATOMICv1 led to therapists favouring skill‐based goals that were easier to measure rather than broader daily life goals, thereby impacting on occupation‐ and client‐centred practice. ATOMICv2 allowed goal setting at any point in therapy, evaluated goals using visual analogue scales, and gathered evidence for rating goal achievement throughout the therapy process. Therapists found the ATOMICv2 to be a culturally responsive tool that aligned with practice perspectives by foregrounding relationship building, facilitating clinical reasoning, documenting daily life changes, and providing integrated inter‐professional care. Conclusion: The ATOMIC demonstrated good clinical utility in an inter‐professional service for First Australian children. It aligned with a culturally responsive practice perspective and captured goal achievement in daily life contexts. Further research is needed to gain client perspectives across the lifespan and to investigate its application by other health professions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Occupational therapists implicitly rely on tacit knowledge to inform the strategies they use to engage children and parents in a therapy session. Objective: To identify strategies occupational therapists use in a therapy session to engage children and parents. Methods: A qualitative approach was employed using interpretive description methodology. This involved seven therapy session observations with six occupational therapists (involving child, parent and therapist) and a key informant interview with the therapist after each session. Thematic analysis was undertaken. Results: Two themes emerged. (a) 'Engaging the child' included 'building a connection', 'attending to feelings', 'thoughts and behaviours', 'structuring or designing the session', 'giving choice and respecting their choice', 'use of self', 'helping the child feel success' and 'helping the child understand and explore'. (b) 'Engaging the parent' included 'connecting', 'listening', 'explaining', 'demonstrating anddiscussing', 'including the parent and valuing their input' and 'collaborating'. Conclusions: The strategies therapists used to engage children and families can be mapped with autonomy, relatedness‐ and competence‐supportive strategies of Self‐Determination Theory. Therapist attunement and responsiveness to the child as well as collaboration with the parent were strategies that represented all aspects of SDT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aimed to understand parent engagement and disengagement in the delivery of occupational therapy to their children. Methods: This study used a qualitative interpretive description methodology. Focus groups and individual interviews were employed. Thirty-two occupational therapists participated in focusgroups or one-on-one interviews. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. Results: Thematic analysis of the data revealed two overarching themes which influenced parent engagement and disengagement in therapy: (1) Parent-therapist relationship and; (2) Therapist responsiveness. Within these two themes: parent feelings; time and timing of therapy; levels of engagement and factors influencing parent engagement were evident. Conclusions: Findings contribute to understanding parent engagement and disengagement in therapy. The findings extend current models of therapeutic engagement in occupational therapy informed by self-determination theory (SDT). Autonomy-, relatedness- and competence-supportive SDT strategies to enhance parent engagement in therapy are described. Occupational therapists reported that parents experience a range of feelings when engaged and disengaged in therapy. These feelings related to hopelessness, having confidence in the therapist and feeling supported, validated and empowered. Parent engagement and disengagement in therapy was described by occupational therapists as occurring at different levels: when it works well (engaged); engaged in the idea of therapy but not engaged in the doing of therapy (middle ground engagement); and when it doesn't work well (disengagement). Occupational therapists reported the importance of being aware of how the factor of time and family, service and therapist characteristics can variously impact parent engagement in therapy. Occupational therapists focus on the parent-therapist relationship and being responsive to parent needs and feelings when engaging parents in therapy. Occupational therapists can draw on principles from self-determination theory to guide them regarding the selection of strategies to engage parents in therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background.: Achieving optimal outcomes for children in occupational therapy settings is influenced, in part, by their engagement. The nature of child engagement from the occupational therapy perspective remains relatively unexplored. Method.: A qualitative research methodology was adopted, using an interpretive description approach. Thirty-two occupational therapists participated in five focus groups and six individual interviews that were thematically analyzed. Findings.: Four themes emerged from the data: (i) signs of child engagement and disengagement; (ii) it's about the child feeling safe; (iii) a sense of meaning and purpose; and (iv) service and therapist factors influencing child engagement. Implications.: Helping the child feel safe; providing meaningful experiences; and being flexible and responsive were key means of connecting with, and supporting, child engagement. Strategies occupational therapists reportedly used to engage the child aligned with the tenets of self-determination theory (autonomy, relatedness, and competence). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Compression garments are widely used for the management of hypertrophic scars, however, the patient experience of wearing compression garments remains minimally explored.Objective: To gain an understanding of the patient experience of wearing compression garments post burn injury, including why patients remove their garments.Method: Interpretive description was the methodological approach used in this study. Semi-structured interviews and a focus group were used to gain in-depth insights into the lived experience of wearing compression garments. Thematic analysis revealed key themes across the data and member checking confirmed data interpretation.Results: Three main themes related to wearing compression garments were identified: what it feels like to wear compression garments, what it is like to be a patient within a burns service and the impact of garments on patients' lives and recovery.Conclusions: The results highlighted a variety of influences that affected the individual experience of garment wear, highlighting the need for a patient centred approach by burn service providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Participation in leisure has known health benefits. Children and young people (CYP) with physical disabilities demonstrate reduced participation in leisure. To facilitate their meaningful participation, one must understand what leisure means to CYP. The aim of this study was to systematically synthesize evidence from qualitative studies on the meaning of leisure for CYP with physical disabilities.Methods: CINAHL, MEDLINE, AMED, EMBASE, PsycINFO, and ERIC were searched periodically from January 2012 until May 2013. Qualitative studies reporting the views of CYP (0-18y) with physical disabilities on leisure participation were included. The analysis involved thematic syntheses, double coding, and established quality appraisal procedures.Results: Twelve studies met inclusion criteria, addressing the leisure experiences of 146 CYP with disabilities. Four themes core to the meaning of leisure for these CYP were (1) 'fun': the enjoyment and pleasure experienced from leisure; (2) 'freedom' of choice and from constraints; (3) 'fulfilment': discovering, developing, and displaying potential; and (4) 'friendship': social connectedness and belonging.Interpretation: The identified themes resonate with the psychological needs outlined by self-determination theory: fun relates to satisfaction and intrinsic motivation; freedom relates to 'autonomy'; fulfilment relates to a belief in 'competence'; and friendship resonates with 'relatedness'. Social context had an impact on all of these themes, indicating that this is an important target for leisure participation interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/aim Occupational therapy educators are challenged to provide students with practical experiences which prepare them for ever changing health-care contexts on graduation. Role-emerging placements have been widely used internationally to help meet this challenge, but research into the learning experiences of students during these innovative placements is limited. This research investigated the enablers and barriers to learning from the perspectives of students on such placements from two European universities. Methods Two separate qualitative studies tracked 10 final year students. Interviews explored their learning experiences prior to, during and after an eight- or 10-week role-emerging placement in a range of settings. Results Four themes emerged, which were (1) adapting to less doing, more thinking and planning; (2) understanding the complexity of collaboration and making it work; (3) emotional extremes; and (4) realising and using the occupational therapy perspective. Conclusions These placements presented a 'roller coaster' of authentic learning experiences which created the opportunity for students to use occupation in practice and develop skills for collaborative working in an interprofessional environment. Whereas students viewed their role-emerging placement experiences positively, challenges included the emotional responses of students and placement pace. Findings suggest the need for supportive student placement experiences in both established and role-emerging areas to prepare students for a range of opportunities in an uncertain future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: In a climate of overloaded health systems and limited opportunities for practice education, there is a need to provide high quality placements that prepare students adequately for contemporary practice. Group models of supervision are one way to address this. This study trialled a multiple mentoring (group supervision) model across three different settings: a university clinic, an acute hospital and a community-based service. The perceptions of practice educators regarding its use and essential implementation features of the model were explored. Method: The model was trialled over an 18-month period. A total of 15 practice educators participated in three focus groups. Findings: Following inductive analysis, three main themes emerged: being clear in the chaos; qualities of the service and people; and challenges and benefits. Findings indicated a range of factors that influenced practice educators' experiences, including the structure of the placement, communication processes and the organisational context. Conclusion: A multiple mentoring model of student supervision can be implemented across a range of practice settings, providing that care is taken to tailor the practicum for each setting. Practice educators perceived that the benefits to themselves, the students, the service and the clients outweighed the challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Canadian Journal of Occupational Therapy is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background and aim: The focus of upper limb assessment for people with neurological damage has expanded beyond impairment factors. Assessments that evaluate the impact of impairment factors within tasks are needed to ensure that interventions address task performance. The Comparative Analysis of Performance - Motor (CAP-M) identifies upper limb impairments during performance of a client-chosen occupational task and uses this information to guide goal formulation. This study investigated the clinical utility of the CAP-M with children with cerebral palsy. Method: Ten occupational therapists each administered the CAP-M with one child with cerebral palsy. The participants were involved in a focus group or focused discussion. Constant comparative analysis was used to guide data-collection and identify key themes. Findings and conclusion: The participants reported that the tool was a useful addition to the current upper limb assessments available for children with spastic cerebral palsy and some voluntary movement. Useful features of the tool were its focus on meaningful tasks, its effectiveness as an observational and educational tool and its usefulness in directing intervention selection. The findings support the development of upper limb assessment tools that span a range of ages and diagnoses and link impairment level factors with task performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Canadian Journal of Occupational Therapy is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)