Summer 2023 Virtual OTD Capstone Symposium

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  Exploring the Post-surgical Needs of Guatemalan Children and their Families from Low Socioeconomic Status (SES) Communities Using an Occupational Therapy Perspective

  Diana Del Carmen Tojin Romero, Karen Aranha, and Angela Labrie Blackwell

  Background: Despite a decline in infant mortality rates in the Global South (GS), there has been a rise in congenital and developmental disabilities. International short-term medical (ISTM) missions in Guatemala seek to address the surgical needs of children from low SES communities, but the understanding of the impacts of such assistance and the post-surgical needs of these communities remains limited. Embracing the Human Rights-Based Approach (HRBA) to healthcare as a foundation for this study recognizes health as a fundamental human right. The main tenets of this approach will guide this investigation to understand the post-surgical needs of children and their families from low socioeconomic status (SES) communities post ISTM. The research question examined includes, What are the lived experiences and challenges of rehabilitating/habilitating children from low SES families after STM-provided orthopedic surgeries?

  Methodology: The qualitative Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis was conducted with a sample size of five participants (parent/guardian) using the following inclusion criteria: parent/caregiver whose child (aged between newborn-17 years) had undergone orthopedic surgery through an ISTM and received no therapy services post-surgery for more than six weeks. Data collection involved the investigator's field journal during immersion at local host organizations and the semi-structured participant interviews. Data analysis consisted of open coding, memoing, fracturing, and examining for emerging themes. The IPA analysis allowed the investigator to take a constructivist approach to explore the emerging themes and people's experiences based on the context and literature available on this topic.

  Findings: The superordinate themes that emerged from the research included "Pre-Surgical Experiences," "The Center's Impact," and "Post-Surgical Experiences." Subordinate themes that met data saturation included "Challenges in Low-SES Communities," "Low Health Literacy," "Role of Extended Family," and "Cultural Beliefs."

  Implications: The study sheds light on diverse challenges faced by low SES communities from an HBRA perspective, where health is viewed as a human right. People from low SES communities benefit temporarily from ISTM services; however, the pre-and post-experiences are detrimental to health and QOL. International missions must embrace the HBRA approach and attempt to collaborate with local organizations so individuals from low SES communities' rights to health are observed across the lifespan.

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  Creciendo y Floreciendo dentro de Nuestro Ambiente: a Contextual Intervention with Latino Parents who have Children Diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

  Jocelyn Urbina, Erik Pérez, and Angela Labrie Blackwell

  According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (2021), 1 in 44 children has been identified with autism-spectrum disorder (ASD). Children with ASD experience challenges in participation that is characterized by difficulties in areas of social communication, social interaction, repetitive behavior, and a range of impairing sensory interests or aversions (Pasco, 2018). These challenges can limit their participation in occupations if not addressed within time as well as put stress on the child’s parents or caregivers. Parents who have children with ASD experience higher elevated levels of parental stress and psychological distress when compared to parents who have children with developmental disabilities that are not ASD. (Estes et. al., 2014). For Latino parents who live in low-income communities, there is additional barriers and health disparities they experience (Zuckerman, 2018). Therefore, Latino parents exhibit a greater need for support in understanding ASD and applying therapeutic strategies at home to increase the child’s participation in daily occupations (Zuckerman et. al., 2018). Studies have shown improvement in child participation and parental competence of ASD when using a contextual intervention (Pashazadeh et. al., 2019). Research suggests when interventions take place within routines children develop and generalize skills (Dunn et. al., 2012). Additionally, allowing the child’s sensory patterns to guide the contextual interventions implemented within daily routines can lead to significant improvement within child participation.

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  A Dance Program Focused on Health Promotion

  Nadalie Valdez and Jazminne Orozco Arteaga

  This capstone project aimed to develop a dance program focused on health promotion, with the intent to encourage physical, mental, and social-emotional well-being. In response to the rise in childhood obesity and associated comorbidities, especially among underserved communities, the goal of this project was to provide opportunities for children of all backgrounds to establish healthy habits and routines.

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  Perceptions of Professionals: Karate as an OT Intervention

  Matthew Watkins and Jazminne Orozco Arteaga

  Karate in literature is shown to be therapeutic for a wide range of populations and conditions they may have, yet current research has not investigated the barriers and opportunities of a collaboration between occupational therapists and karate instructors to implement karate as a therapeutic medium. This mixed-methods study aimed to gain the perspective of both professional groups on potentially collaborating with one another, via a survey and qualitative interviews. Results indicated that intrinsic and extrinsic factors can act as barriers or supports depending on client and intervention context, that knowledge must be shared between all parties for successful collaboration, and that the methods of collaboration may heavily impact which intrinsic/extrinsic factors are most influential in the process of collaboration.

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  Community Reintegration of Formerly Incarcerated Persons: An Occupational Therapy Guidebook

  Shauntrice Woodberry; Angela Labrie Blackwell Phd, OTR; and Steven Gerardi Phd, OTR

  The recidivism rates in the US are the highest, as the current research suggests the majority of offenders (two-thirds) released from prison in any given year will be reincarcerated within three years (Eggers et al., 2006). The high rates of recidivism suggest that the criminal justice system has not been able to successfully identify the needs of incarcerated individuals necessary to support the success of their community integration process.

  Since there are no published guidelines available to OT practitioners to guide their provision of community reintegration services to formerly incarcerated persons, the product of this capstone was a guidebook.