2024 Volume 43 Issue 4 Pages 540-547
People with multiple disabilities, including hearing and mental health, may not receive appropriate support due to communication problems, and may have difficulty living as a member of society. In this study, the author, an Occupational Therapist (OT）, provided support for a client with Schizophrenia and Hearing Impairment, who had been in and out of a psychiatric hospital repeatedly and had been considered by her family and support personnel to have limited capacity for living as a member of society. The OT explored her capability from the perspective of occupational therapy as a community life support worker. As a result, the client's built-in ability to live as a member of society was brought out, so the client was able to live as she wished while receiving support from multiple institutions. Thus, occupational therapy may support individuals with co-occurring Schizophrenia and Hearing Impairment to live as a member of society.
