Purpose. The purpose of this study is to illuminate how persons with acquired brain injury (ABI) and their significant others experienced individualised occupation-based interventions using commonly available everyday technology (ET) to compensate for perceived difficulties with performance of tasks in daily life. Method. Qualitative research interviews were conducted with 10 persons with ABI and with one of their significant others. The data were analysed according to qualitative content analysis. Results. The persons with ABI experienced that they mastered their lives in a better way by the compensatory use of ET. They became capable of doing tasks independently and experienced themselves as being a new person. During the intervention process, persons with ABI became aware of the compensatory potential of familiar ET, and they were supported to use effective compensatory strategies and incorporate them into their habits. Their significant others felt a relief in daily life, and their mood was positively affected as they experienced reduced responsibility and need of control. Conclusions. This qualitative study has shown that persons with ABI, as well as their significant others, experienced a multitude of benefits from occupation-based interventions using commonly available ET to compensate for their difficulties in the performance of tasks in daily life and that the goals achieved affected their overall contentment with life
Purpose. To investigate how individualised occupation-based interventions with commonly available everyday technology (ET) can compensate for perceived difficulties with daily life tasks after an aquired brain injury (ABI) and improve satisfaction with occupational performance. Method. This intervention study was designed as a multiple case study according to Yin. Ten men and women with an ABI (traumatic or non-traumatic) participated. Data were collected through interviews, observations and field notes before and after the intervention and at follow-up (on average 11 weeks afterwards). The interventions focused on enabling each participant's prioritised goals related to task performance in daily life. Results. All participants achieved all their goals by learning to use both new functions in their own familiar ET and new ET. The participant's perceived difficulties in occupational performance decreased and their satisfaction with occupational performance increased with the use of ET. Conclusions. An individualised intervention process, involving the use of own familiar ET or ET off-the-shelf, has the potential to compensate for perceived difficulties following an ABI and improve satisfaction with occupational performance in daily life
Aim: To evaluate the test–retest reliability of the Management of Everyday Technology Assessment (META) in a sample of people with acquired brain injury (ABI). Method: The META was administered twice within a two-week period to 25 people with ABI. A Rasch measurement model was used to convert the META ordinal raw scores into equal-interval linear measures of each participant’s ability to manage everyday technology (ET). Test–retest reliability of the stability of the person ability measures in the META was examined by a standardized difference Z-test and an intra-class correlations analysis (ICC 1). Results: The results showed that the paired person ability measures generated from the META were stable over the test–retest period for 22 of the 25 subjects. The ICC 1 correlation was 0.63, which indicates good overall reliability. Conclusion: The META demonstrated acceptable test–retest reliability in a sample of people with ABI. The results illustrate the importance of using sufficiently challenging ETs (relative to a person’s abilities) to generate stable META measurements over time.Implications for Rehabilitation •The findings add evidence regarding the test–retest reliability of the person ability measures generated from the observation assessment META in a sample of people with ABI.•The META might support professionals in the evaluation of interventions that are designed to improve clients’ performance of activities including the ability to manage ET.
Purpose: The aim of this study was to explore the psychosocial impact of standing devices as experienced by users. Method: This is the second part of a comprehensive survey in five counties in Sweden where all the subjects with standing devices were invited to participate. The impact of standing devices on functional independence, quality of life and wellbeing was assessed using a questionnaire, Psychosocial Impact of Assistive Devices Scale (PIADS). Results: The psychosocial impact of the standing devices was perceived as positive. The highest PIADS scores in relation to age were found in the oldest group, aged 65 years and older. The ability to walk and independence in ambulation resulted in higher scores than the use of a wheelchair and/or dependence on others. Those who stood often awarded higher scores in the PIADS questionnaire compared to those who used the device less frequently. When standing was integrated in various activities, its psychosocial impact received high scores. Conclusion: The psychosocial impact of standing devices was generally experienced positively. The main results indicated that standing in a standing device had a value and we as professionals should ask the users about the intended purpose of their standing in order to prescribe the optimal device.Implications for Rehabilitation •Standing in standing devices has positive psychosocial impact for the user.•As professionals we should broaden our view of the use of standing devices, i.e. to see the standing device as an aid that not only treats the body’s structures or improves the user’s abilities in activities, but also provides a psychosocial impact on the user’s daily life, and to find meaningful goals for the user from a psychosocial perspective
Purpose: The aim of the study was to illuminate the meaning that standing holds for persons who require standing devices. Method: The phenomenological/hermeneutical analysis of the interviews was carried out using a life world-approach. Fifteen users of standing devices lacking the ability to stand independently participated in the interviews.Result: Each person’s lived experiences of standing in their devices indicated that the upright body position opens up an opportunity for connection to the outside world. An upright body position (i) alters the person’s sense of self, (ii) augments the person’s availability to the outside world, (iii) strengthens social interplay, and (iv) changes a person’s motivation and their expectations over time. Conclusion: Standing may be something that unites the body and self. Understanding the meaning of the altered body position that the use of standing devices opens up is vital for physiotherapists and occupational therapists prescribing these devices. Furthermore, it is important to take account of the subjective body, as well as the biological one, to enhance the adoption of different body positions and the person’s experiences.