Canadian Journal of Occupational Therapy

Même si les motifs de référence en ergothérapie concernent principalement les difficultés d’écriture manuelle à l’âge scolaire, il n’existe aucun outil validé ni aucune valeur de référence pour ce type d’évaluation auprès d’enfants francophones au Canada.

L’objectif de cette étude était d’adapter et de valider les tâches d’écriture d’un protocole d’évaluation en anglais afin de déterminer des valeurs de référence concernant la vitesse d’écriture manuelle pour des enfants francophones.

Cent quarante et un élèves, en 1^re année (n = 73) et en 2^e année (n = 68), ont été soumis à trois tâches d’écriture du Handwriting Assessment Protocol–2nd edition (copie de près, copie de loin et dictée), lesquelles ont été adaptées pour les enfants franco-québécois.

Des valeurs de référence de vitesse d’écriture manuelle ont été obtenues pour les tâches de copie de près et de loin.

L’adaptation de ce protocole et les valeurs de référence de vitesse bonifieront l’évaluation ergothérapique de l’écriture manuelle chez la population cible.

The idea of empowerment permeates the occupational therapy literature yet has received little critical reflection from occupational therapy’s theorists.

This paper aims to explore the concept of empowerment and highlight a recent definition that resonates with occupational therapists’ core values.

Empowerment is generally understood to be a process of bestowing power and giving ability to someone deficient in both. However, a new definition provides a framework for understanding how empowerment might enhance people’s capabilities.

The World Bank’s depiction of empowerment fits well with occupational therapists’ beliefs in the importance of the ability and opportunity to “do,” providing a framework for action. This framework focuses on people’s capabilities: their freedom—or opportunity—to choose what they wish to do and to be and their ability to act on these wishes. Moreover, the World Bank’s assertion that empowered people have freedom of both choice and action suggests empowerment is a relevant concept for occupational therapists.

Recent literature in evidence-based practice indicates that evidence is defined differently from practice and research perspectives. However, few published works address therapists’ perspectives of the nature and use of evidence in everyday practice.

This study describes the definition, types, and use of evidence from the perspective of six school-based occupational therapists.

Data were collected through focus groups and participant-submitted documentation and analyzed using qualitative and quantitative content analysis.

Two categories of evidence emerged: internalized evidence and evidence gathered during the intervention process. Clinical reasoning, identified as a key skill in evidence-based practice, supported the synthesis of therapist internalized evidence with “in-the-moment” evidence gathered from activity, contextual, and occupational analyses of the client.

The findings support current literature that has suggested expanding the definition of evidence (i.e., more than research findings alone). Further investigation of evidence building in practice may help in constructing a more inclusive professional culture of evidence-based practice.

Participation in occupations is a basic human right. Although people with schizophrenia commonly experience restrictions in participation, there is a paucity of research in this area.

This study aimed to compare the participation patterns of people with schizophrenia to people without mental illness (control group).

A total of 140 people of similar age and sex completed the Adults Subjective Assessment of Participation and provided demographic and health-related data.

People with schizophrenia tend to participate in fewer activities and to participate alone. However, they participate with similar intensity as those in the control group.

The participation patterns of people with schizophrenia are both unique and similar to those of the general population. The differences in participation raise concerns due to signs of restriction and social exclusion. However, it appears that people with schizophrenia benefit from occupation and community-based services that promote and support participation with others in diverse activities.

Currently, Canada and the United States are the only two countries that mandate entry to the occupational therapy profession at the master’s level. There was a recommendation considered by the American Occupational Therapy Association that by 2025 all education programs would move to the clinical doctorate level. In August 2015, the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education made the formal decision that for now, the entry-level qualification for occupational therapists in the United States will remain at both the master’s and clinical doctorate levels.

This article presents an overview of the types of doctorates available, the pros and cons of moving to the clinical doctorate, and some potential questions that will need to be considered.

Is the next step in the educational progression of occupational therapy in Canada the entry-level clinical doctorate? What are the potential implications for the profession, our clients, and funders?

Further discourse and investigation of this issue is needed.

Little empirical support exists for interrater reliability between evaluators from different backgrounds when assessing on-road outcomes of drivers.

We quantified interrater reliability of on-road outcomes between a certified driving school instructor (DI) and an occupational therapist and certified driver rehabilitation specialist (CDRS).

Both raters used the Global Rating Score (GRS) with two levels (pass, fail), the GRS with four levels (pass, pass with recommendations, fail remediable, fail), and the priority error rating score (PERS; most frequently occurring on-road errors in priority order) to assess 35 drivers (age, M = 48.31 years, SD = 9.76 years; 40% male; 86% with multiple sclerosis).

The DI and occupational therapist CDRS had excellent agreement on the GRS with two levels (κ = .892, p < .0001), GRS with four levels (κ = .952, p < .0001), and the PERS (κ = .847–.902, p < .0001), indicating interrater reliability.

This research contributes to empirical support for the on-road assessment.