Do occupational therapists’ communication behaviours change with experience?

Uncovering the experiences of engaging in an inpatient occupation-based group program: The LifeSkills group

BACKGROUND

Consumer engagement is an important element for developing and maintaining value-based healthcare standards. Occupation-based practice in the context of a group has been adopted by inpatient rehabilitation clinicians, but little research has explored if these groups are valuable and useful to patients.

AIMS/OBJECTIVES

To explore the experiences of patients participating in an occupation-based group intervention for instrumental activities of daily living to understand its value and usefulness in an inpatient rehabilitation setting.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Interpretive description guided the development of the study. Semi-structured interviews were completed with 15 participants of an occupation-based group, the LifeSkills group. Comparative analysis was used to analyse the data and develop themes.

RESULTS

Five themes were reported by participants: choice and control, confidence through doing, a real-world connection, the power of the therapeutic relationship and the impact of the shared experience.

CONCLUSIONS AND SIGNIFICANCE

In line with current rehabilitation literature, patient experiences around client-centredness, occupational engagement in a 'real-world' environment, and valued relationships can be facilitated through an occupation-based group. This study supports the implementation of valued-based healthcare in understanding patient perceptions of occupation-based interventions into rehabilitation; ensuring that the right intervention is being used at the right time for the right patient.

The association between undergraduate occupational therapy students' listening and interpersonal skills and performance on practice education placements

BACKGROUND

Communication skills such as listening, empathy and body language are core competencies that entry level occupational therapy students must demonstrate when completing practice placements.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate if interpersonal skills taught to undergraduate occupational therapy students predict their practice performance.

METHODS

Second, third and fourth year occupational therapy students (n = 132) completed the Active-Empathetic Listening Scale (AELS); the Listening Styles Profile-Revised (LSP-R); and the Interpersonal Communication Competence Scale (ICCS). The Student Practice Evaluation Form-Revised (SPEF-R) measured students' performance at the completion of a placement. Regression analysis examined the relationships between students' interpersonal and listening skills and their fieldwork performance.

RESULTS

Higher ICCS Interaction Management subscale scores were significantly associated with better SPEF-R Communication Skills at final evaluation (β = 1.46, p < 0.05). Higher AELS Sensing subscale scores were predictive of greater Self-Management Skill performance on the SPEF-R (β = 0.84, SE = 0.42). Student's demographic characteristics were also predictive of their SPEF-R scores. The ICCS and LSP-R's subscale scores were not predictive of SPEF-R scores.

CONCLUSION

This preliminary evidence identified several interpersonal skills that were predictive of some key SPEF-R competencies. To better prepare students to successfully complete practice placements, these interpersonal skills should be incorporated into occupational therapy education curriculum.

Delivering Bad News: Attitudes, Feelings, and Practice Characteristics Among Speech-Language Pathologists

PURPOSE

The purpose of this study was to examine the attitudes, feelings, and practice characteristics of speech-language pathologists (SLPs) in Israel regarding the subject of delivering bad news.

METHOD

One hundred and seventy-three Israeli SLPs answered an online survey. Respondents represented SLPs in Israel in all stages of vocational experience, with varying academic degrees, from a variety of employment settings. The survey addressed emotions involved in the process of delivering bad news, training on this subject, and background information of the respondents. Frequency distributions of the responses of the participants were determined, and Pearson correlations were computed to determine the relation between years of occupational experience and the following variables: frequency of delivering bad news, opinions regarding training, and emotions experienced during the process of bad news delivery.

RESULTS

Our survey showed that bad news delivery is a task that most participants are confronted with from the very beginning of their careers. Participants regarded training in the subject of delivering bad news as important but, at the same time, reported receiving relatively little training on this subject. In addition, our survey showed that negative emotions are involved in the process of delivering bad news.

CONCLUSIONS

Training SLPs on specific techniques is required for successfully delivering bad news. The emotional burden associated with breaking bad news in the field of speech-language pathology should be noticed and addressed.

Interpersonal social responsibility model of service learning: A longitudinal study

BACKGROUND

Service-learning (SL) is commonly used in Occupational Therapy (OT) programs worldwide as a community placement educational strategy. However, most SL models are not clearly defined in terms of both methodology and learning outcomes.

OBJECTIVES

This longitudinal study explores a structured model of Service-Learning (Interpersonal Social Responsibility-Service Learning: ISR-SL) aimed towards the development of professional identity among OT students. Based on OT students experiences from the end of the course through later stages as mature students and professionals.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

A qualitative research design was used to explore the perceptions and experiences of 150 first, second, and third-year OT students and graduates who have participated in ISR-SL during their first academic year.

RESULTS

Our findings suggest that the structured, long-term relationship with a person with a disability in the natural environment, which is the core of the ISR-SL, allowed students to develop a professional identity based on seeing the person as a whole and recognizing his/her centrality in the therapeutic relationship.

CONCLUSIONS AND SIGNIFICANCE

This study suggests ISR-SL as future direction or next step for implementing SL in OT and other healthcare disciplines programs.