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Background: Animal Assisted Therapy has increased within occupational therapy.Occupational threapists may use animals within the profession, but the description of how these occupational therapy interventions are conducted is missing.Aim:This scoping study explored how canine assisted occupational therapy is described and conducted. Material and methods: A scoping review method was applied to explore, summarize and describe canine-assisted octupational therapy practice. Six databases and manual search of identified literature utilized search terms focusing on Animal Assisted Therapy and Occupational Therapy. Qualitative content analysis was used to identify emergent themes. Results: From 148 pappers, after duplicates removed, only four papers, representing two studies, met full inclusion/exclusion criteria, which focuced solely on autistic children. Two themes emerged: social interaction with a therapy dog, and description of activities, skills and goals in canine- assisted interventions. The second theme consisted of subthemes: social interaction and motor skills practice and practicing activities of daily living with therapy dog. Conclusion: Therapy dogs were described as acting agents to facilitate participant engagement and participating as a third member in the therapeutic process. Further research is needed to consider the extent to which CA-OT contributes to clientsachieving their therapeutic goals. Significance: This study highlights how canine- assisted therapy is described and used in occupational therapy.

Bakgrund   En växande äldre befolkning innebär utmaningar gällande ensamhet, fallolyckor, demenssjukdom och att kunna tillgodose en god hälsa bland äldre personer. För att möta de utmaningarna krävs en bredd av åtgärder. Ett område som fått allt större genomslag är djurassisterad terapi. Tidigare studier har bland annat visat hur djurens närvaro bland människor bidrar med upplevelser av lugn. I Sverige finns numera rekommendationer från Socialstyrelsen om att djurassisterad terapi kan användas hos äldre med demenssjukdom. En central del av sjuksköterskans profession är att främja hälsa och förebygga sjukdom. De omvårdnadsåtgärder som görs för att uppnå detta ska vara evidensgrundande. Ett ökat intresse finns därmed för djurassisterad terapi utifrån den kontexten.   Syfte Syftet var att beskriva vilken betydelse djurassisterad terapi kan ha för äldres hälsa.  Metod En icke-systematisk litteraturöversikt gjordes med sökningar i tre olika databaser. Dessa var PubMed, CIHNAL och PsycINFO. Tydliga avgränsningar med inklusions- och exklusionskriterier arbetades fram. Totalt inkluderades 15 artiklar med både kvantitativ och kvalitativ design. Nogsam kvalitetsgranskning av artiklarna gjordes utifrån Sophiahemmets bedömningsunderlag. Vidare gjordes en integrerad dataanalys beskriven av Kristensson för att sammanställa resultatet. Först gjordes detta individuellt för att sedan diskuteras gemensamt. Detta för att säkerställa ett så tillförlitligt tillvägagångssätt som möjligt.  Resultat Tre områden där hälsan kan påverkas av djurassisterad terapi framkom, dessa var fysisk, psykisk och social hälsa. Bland annat ökade rörelseförmågan och den sociala interaktionen. Smärta och känslor av ensamhet minskades samtidigt som puls och blodtryck sänktes och det allmänna stämningsläget förbättrades. Slutligen påverkades även den kognitiva förmågan. Slutsats Djurassisterad terapi kan ha betydelse för äldre personers hälsa även om det finns ett behov av fortsatt forskning på området. Vidare finns behovet av riktlinjer på nationell nivå för implementering av djurassisterad terapi. I dagsläget bygger det nämligen på enskilda kommuners arbete för att ta fram riktlinjer kring användningen på särskilda boenden. / Background An increasing amount of elderly people creates challenges regarding loneliness, fall injuries, dementia as well as challenges to work towards a good health. One method which has gotten more attention recently is animal assisted therapy because it contributes to people’s experience of calmness among other things. In Sweden there are recommendations from the National Board of Health and Welfare that animal assisted therapy can be used in nursing homes for people with dementia. An important part of the profession of nurses is to promote health and to prevent diseases. This work should be based on evidence. Therefore, there is a growing interest for animal assisted therapy. Aim The aim was to describe the importance of animal assisted therapy for the health of elderly people.  Method  A non-systematic literature review was conducted by using terms in three databases: PubMed, CINAHL and PsycINFO. Delimitations with clear inclusion and exclusion criteria are presented in the literature review. In total 15 articles were included with quantitative and qualitative data. Their quality was analyzed by using an assessment tool from Sophiahemmet University. The result was compiled by using an integrative data analysis described by Kristensson. First made individually and then together to make sure it was made in a reliable manner.  Results Three main categories were identified where animal assisted therapy can influence the physical, mental, and social health. Among other things it improved the patients’ mood, mobility and social interaction while it decreased blood pressure, heart rate as well as the feeling of loneliness and pain. The cognitive functioning also got affected. Conclusions Animal assisted therapy can be important for the health of older people, but it needs further research. National guidelines to implement animal assisted therapy are also needed because today the municipalities themselves must create the guidelines in their nursing homes.

The purpose of this diploma work is to introduce zootherapy and therapy dog and to determine the possibilities of employing therapy dogs in education of children in elementary and special schools. The theoretical part of the thesis deals with the description of zootherapy, its forms and methods. It also deals with preparation and exams for therapists. Lastly there is a section on therapy dogs, their personality and preparation for this field of work. You can also find some information on how to choose the best puppy using the puppy aptitude test. The practical part of this thesis deals with the employment of animal assisted therapy at normal and speial schools. The results had been achieved through interviews that I had made with therapists who use dogs at schools and also through obseration during those classes.