The purpose of this study was twofold: to clarify the information on daily activities that rehabilitation staff at medical institutions should include in the process of receiving referral forms and creating a care plans, and to use this information to create the necessary structural framework necessary for a referral forms. An unstructured interview was conducted with 4 care managers and the responses were analyzed using SCQRM and SCAT. As a result, 83 constructs were generated, and 5 major categories were obtained. The letter of submission focused on quality of life, roles, and habits, suggesting the need to present specific interventions to welfare workers.

In occupational therapy for children with autism spectrum disorder, it is important to understand and support the family as a system. Therefore, investigating family function, which is a construct aimed at understanding the family as a system, has the potential to assist occupational therapists in obtaining information with which to support the family. In this study, a scoping review was used to organize factors related to family functioning in autism spectrum disorders, and materials were retrieved from six online databases. Twenty references met the criteria, and factors related to family functioning were identified, including children's problem behaviors and parents' health status. In addition, several interventions to improve family functioning were identified, but none of these were provided by occupational therapists.

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of school consultations based on specific protocols in special needs schools of intellectual disability. Occupational therapists (OTs) visited schools and provided consultation services to 15 students and the teachers at each elementary and lower secondary divisions. The protocol consisted of three consultations per student (using a prescribed form to confirm goals and share support contents). The Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS) and Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC-J) measured the effects of the consultations. Both GAS and ABC-J scores showed a significant improvement. The school consultation provided by OTs was found to contribute to the achievement of individual goals for each student and to reduce teachers' sense of difficulty.

The purpose of this study was to develop and test the content validity of a questionnaire to select older adults who could be expected to improve their life functions through short-term intensive rehabilitation. The study consisted of the following two studies. Study 1 used focus group interviews with practitioners of long-term care prevention projects and qualitative data analysis methods to develop a questionnaire with 31 items in 4 domains to identify characteristics of elderly people who achieve their goals in short-term intensive rehabilitation. In Study 2, a questionnaire using the Delphi method was conducted with care managers and medical professionals involved in long-term care prevention projects to verify the content validity of the questionnaire developed in Study 1. The project resulted in a questionnaire with 21 items in 4 domains.

This study explores how participating in the occupation-based observational assessment course impacts therapists' occupation-based practice (OBP), including barriers to effective practice and discoveries of effectiveness of the course which encourage OBP. The results show that the therapist-centered barriers to OBP can be reduced. Although therapists who participated in the course implemented OBP more regularly than before, the environmental and client barrier remained unchanged. This indicates that short lectures may lead to interventions, opportunities for interaction among participants, and evaluation. However, to reduce environmental and client barriers, there may be a need for occupational therapy courses with different content.

A survey was conducted to promote occupation-based practice (OPB) through clarifying both the current state of (OBP) on a national scale and its cross-disciplinary perspective. The survey developed by the authors included basic information on the participants' “degree of knowledge about OBP,” “willingness to learn about OBP,” “degree of implementation of OBP,” “intention to implement OBP,” and “recognition of the need for OBP”. The results revealed that 89 of 188 occupational therapists (46.7%) had knowledge of OBP, and 83 of 188 (43.6%) were using it daily, accounting for less than half of the total. On the other hand, 85.6% of occupational therapists were aware of the need for OBP, indicating that there is a gap between OBP awareness and implementation status. There were no significant differences in OBP implementation or awareness by practice field, and logistic regression analysis identified intervention timing and knowledge of OBP as factors significantly influencing OBP implementation. Knowledge of OBP, in particular, had a significant impact on OBP implementation, and it was found that the type of practice area influences the implementation of OBP in geriatric occupational therapy. Furthermore, it is clear that occupational therapists who intend to implement OBP are well aware of its importance. These results suggest that providing opportunities for education and learning about OBP, including undergraduate and postgraduate education, will help promote OBP by deepening knowledge of OBP and forming a belief in OBP.

This study aimed to evaluate the approaches used by occupational therapists (OTs) to support employment among individuals with mild intellectual disabilities. OTs of 11 individuals with mild intellectual disabilities requiring employment support were interviewed online via Zoom. A modified grounded theory approach was used for analysis. In total, 24 concepts and five subcategories were identified, which were grouped into the following four categories: “Broad assessment,” “Support as a Guide and Companion,” “Support for employment,” and “Continuity of support.” The ability to 1) assess by looking at the individual and company from all directions, 2) assist the individual to find motivation to work, and 3) provide support according to the individual's life stages while keeping the future in mind were important for supporting individuals with mild intellectual disabilities to find employment and settle down in the workplace.

The purpose of this study was to identify the factors that occupational therapists (OTRs) working in convalescent rehabilitation wards use to judge the independent toileting ability of stroke patients. Seven OTRs with more than five years of experience working in rehabilitation wards were individually interviewed, and Reflexive Thematic Analysis (RTA) was used to analyze the data. From 97 codes, eight themes and 13 sub-themes were generated. OTRs were found to assess stroke patients' independent toileting ability based on these eight themes. In the future, the number of research participants and facilities should be increased, and the themes further developed.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the factors that influence the improvement in motor function at 6 months after arthroscopic rotator cuff repair (ARCR) on the improvement in the disabilities of the arm, shoulder, and hand (DASH) score at 1 year postoperatively. Methods: A total of 83 patients who underwent ARCR and postoperative rehabilitation were included in the study. The patients were classified into two groups according to whether or not their DASH scores improved from the preoperative period to 1 year postoperatively. The effect of improvement in shoulder range of motion, strength, and pain, as well as the presence or absence of re-tear at 6 months after surgery on improvement in DASH scores at 1 year postoperatively was examined using logistic regression analysis. Results: Logistic regression analysis revealed that improvement in shoulder abduction strength, and pain, as well as the presence or absence of re-tear were all significantly related to the improvement in DASH scores at 1 year postoperatively. Furthermore, the cut-off values calculated using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis were 0.25 N/kg for shoulder abduction strength improvement and 2.00 for pain reduction. Conclusion: Results suggest that improvement in shoulder abduction strength, pain reduction, and absence of re-tear at 6 months after surgery are important for improving the DASH score 1 year after surgery.

An interview survey was conducted to understand the process of both the initial symptoms of dementia to hospitalization in a psychiatric hospital and that leading to difficulty in nursing care, and to clarify the necessary support. The data obtained were qualitatively analyzed using a Modified Grounded Theory Approach. As a result, the mental burden of constant monitoring for dementia-induced wandering leads to a significant reduction of private time, resulting in a lack of home care tolerance. The continuous mental burden was a factor in the negative feelings of the caregivers, and after being admitted to a psychiatric hospital, the refusal to live together was confirmed. We believe that it is necessary to support caregivers through reducing their mental burden.

We clarified the effectiveness of an assistive device that supports the trunk from the front (hereafter referred to as “anterior trunk support”) on attentional function and investigated its influence on Activities of Daily Living (ADL). Patients with cerebrovascular disease were seated with or without an anterior trunk support, and the test of attention function, subjective scores, and center of load position were measured according to a crossover study. The results showed that the sitting position with anterior trunk support significantly affected test performance, subjective scores, and load center position. The results suggest that anterior trunk support is effective for attentional function and may help eating in ADL. Future prospects include the use and usefulness of the anterior trunk support for different subjects and in different work situations.

In this case study, support for improving occupational function following the reduction and discontinuation of medication was provided for a patient with dementia upon diagnosis of occupational dysfunction. The patient had been admitted to a dementia care unit and showed a decrease in activity associated with medication. As a result, participation in new occupational activities and opportunities for interpersonal interaction increased along with increased participation in the number of occupational therapy programs. Furthermore, the patient's occupational function and motivation for activity improved. This case study suggests the importance of an assessment to understand the effect of overmedication on occupational dysfunction and decrease in motivation for activity. Practice which targets occupational dysfunction might contribute to focusing on the appropriate content to support patients with dementia, thus alleviating their occupational dysfunction and increasing their motivation for activity.

A 40-year-old female patient with left hemiplegia, who had trouble pinching her thumb and index finger of the paralyzed side was treated using a functional splint during outpatient occupational therapy. The Motor Activity Log (MAL) at the initial assessment had an Amount of Use (AOU) score of 0 and a Quality of Movement (QOM) score of 0. The patient underwent outpatient occupational therapy for 9 months and routinely wore a functional splint to perform various daily tasks; during the final assessment, her MAL( AOU/QOM) scores improved to 1.25. The results indicate that an intervention focused on daily life can lead to an expansion of the performable tasks.

We devised procedures to promote intensive upper limb functional training, voluntary training, and behavioral change in accordance with the characteristics of higher brain functions, including attention and memory impairment, for a case admitted to a recovery rehabilitation ward with various higher brain dysfunctions in addition to severe upper limb paralysis. As a result, improvement exceeding the prognosis of the admission process was observed. This suggests that intensive upper limb training, voluntary training, and behavior change procedures tailored to the characteristics of the patient's higher brain function may be one way to improve upper limb function when supporting the discharge of patients with severe upper limb paralysis and higher brain dysfunction who are admitted to the Rehabilitation Unit.

To clarify the association between cognitive dysfunction and cerebral white matter lesions and cerebral microbleeds hemorrhage in patients with cerebrovascular disease with infratentorial lesions, patients' medical records of patients admitted to a convalescent rehabilitation ward in a case-control design were used. Associations were revealed between the degree of periventricular lesions and frontal lobe function, and between the degree of deep white matter lesions and frontal lobe function. An association was also found between infratentorial cerebral microbleeds. These findings suggest that cerebral white matter lesions, infratentorial microbleeds, and frontal lobe function are associated with cerebral white matter lesions and infratentorial microbleeds in patients with cerebrovascular disease with infratentorial lesions.

Occupational balance is one of the most important concepts in the history of occupational therapy. The purpose of this study was to develop and verify the feasibility of the Japanese version of the Occupational Balance Questionnaire (OBQ-J). The OBQ-J was developed according to the guidelines for the process of cross-cultural adaptation of self-report instruments and the recommendations of Epstein et al. As a result, eleven items were developed that maintained the intent of the original version, were appropriate to Japanese culture, and were valid in terms of linguistic validity. Further study is warranted to investigate the reliability and validity of the OBQ-J.

This study aimed to explore the feasibility and tolerability of remote-monitored occupational therapy (OT) using robotic gloves (RG) in home-dwelling patients with Parkinson's disease( PD) and its effectiveness on upper extremity function, health-related quality of life, and caregiver burden. This is a preliminary single-case study of OT with and without RG performed twice a week for five weeks. Hand pain and severe fatigue, dropouts, simple test for evaluating hand function, Canadian Occupational Performance Measure, EuroQol 5-dimension 5-level, and Zarit burden interview were observed for six months. During the study, there were no adverse events or absences. All outcomes improved after OT with RG but declined gradually without RG, returning scores comparable to pre-OT with RG after six months. This OT program for home-dwelling patients with PD has been confirmed to be feasible, tolerable, and effective, and may be considered a future home OT.

Background: Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) is an important process that rehabilitation professionals working in acute care wards should work on as a common language. Purpose: This study explored the factors associated with promoting EBP among rehabilitation professionals working in acute care wards. Methods: Thirty-three rehabilitation professionals (21 Physical Therapists, 6 Occupational Therapists, and 6 Speech Therapists) working in the acute care ward of Hospital A were asked to respond to the questionnaire regarding EBP. Results: All 33 participants answered the questionnaire (100% response rate). The following were found to be associated with implementation of EBP: Experience in the implementation of EBP (r=.598, p<.001), Positive experiences resulting from implementation of EBP (r=.588, p<.001), Experience in education on high-level evidence-based intervention and assistance methods (r=.520, p=.002), Self-efficacy regarding EBP (r=.475, p=.005), Intrinsic motivation for EBP (r=.465, p=.006), Experience in education on EBP methodology (r=.358, p=.041), and Experience as preceptor in training of junior staff, e.g., educating new recruits (r=.345, p=.049). No significant correlation was found between implementation of EBP and years of clinical experience. Sex, job title, and final education had no significant effect on implementation of EBP. Conclusions: To promote the implementation of EBP among rehabilitation professionals working in acute care wards, the study suggests the need to gain clinical and educational experience in EBP, as well as to increase their self-efficacy and intrinsic motivation for EBP.