Abstract
This study evaluated educator perceptions of school-based OT services before and after implementation of a collaborative, flexible service delivery model. Results support contextually embedded school-based OT services.
Primary Author and Speaker: Matia Gjellstad
Models for effective school-based occupational therapy services have increasingly been studied to determine evidence-based methods of supporting contextually based student skill acquisition. This mixed-methods study aimed to explore and examine educator perceptions of school-based occupational therapy services before and after implementation of a collaborative, flexible service delivery model. A survey instrument was utilized as a pre-intervention (N=44) and post-intervention (N=31) measure of teacher perceptions of and satisfaction with school-based occupational therapy services. A comparison of means between groups revealed no statistically significant differences between pre- and post-intervention measures, although means were noted to increase across most variables on the post-intervention measure. Constant-comparative analysis of qualitative data revealed themes related to educator understanding of occupational therapy services, educator positive regard for occupational therapy services, and educators desire for more time and resources from occupational therapy practitioners. Results of this study add to the body of evidence that support workload models of service delivery for school-based occupational therapy practitioners. Results also support contextually embedded occupational therapy service delivery for children in the academic setting.
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