The elderly population has been recognized as one of the fastest growing age groups in the United States and there has been a dramatic increase in the number of elderly women living alone in the community. The purpose of this study was to examine the functional status, social support system, and self-perceived health of elderly women living alone and those living with others in Dade County, Florida. This study was derived from a larger Dade County Needs Assessment. The sample for this study included 1,278 elderly women who were white (n = 561), Hispanic (n = 550), black (n = 153), and "other" (n = 14).

The entire population of Icelandic occupational therapists were surveyed concerning characteristics and attitudes toward professionalism and educational goals. There were 87 questionnaires sent out and 80 (92%) were returned and used for analysis. This data will have a positive impact upon the development of the first Icelandic occupational therapy curriculum. Icelandic occupational therapists, in general, value academic skills over technical skills, are active in their association, willing to take on duties for the advancement of the profession and are interested in conducting research. The attitudes of the Icelandic occupational therapists were generally quite uniform. T- tests and one-way ANOVAs (p < .05) revealed some significant differences in a number of attitudes by education level, length of professional experience and country of education. The results show the importance of providing Icelandic occupational therapy practitioners with the opportunity to take part in research. This study will serve as a foundation for future studies on Icelandic occupational therapists and provide reference data for later comparison.

This research investigates the perceptions that individuals with mental illnesses have about the employment experience as a whole. Survey data from 72 respondents with mental disabilities were used to identify areas of perceived work limitations. Comparisons regarding employee work performance were made between eleven individuals with mental disabilities and their supervisors. Functional limitations identified by respondents with mental disabilities and the characteristic symptoms set forth in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders were compared. Overall findings showed that individuals with mental disabilities in this study had problems in the areas of judgment, initiative, interacting and rapport with co-workers and supervisors, frustration tolerance and coping with job stress, and adapting to changes at work. Comparison of identified work task difficulties with diagnostic criteria indicate active symptomatology to have an effect on job performance. Recommendations regarding occupational therapy assessment approaches and roles to facilitate ADA implementation are presented.

This study examined the differences in pain perception and pain pressure threshold between the premenstrual phase of the menstrual cycle and the days of the cycle which are not menstrual or premenstrual. Over 2 complete menstrual cycles, 20 volunteer subjects with no known disabilities or illness reported pain assessed by visual analogue scale (VAS) and pressure threshold measures collected 5 times (intervals) for each cycle. A two-factor repeated measures analysis of variance (i.e. cycle, interval and the interaction) revealed only a significant difference across interval for both pain perception (VAS) (F = 15.3146, (4,76), p < .01), and pain pressure threshold (F = 12.0367, (4,76), p < .01). The premenstrual VAS mean scores were significantly higher and pain threshold mean scores significantly lower than the means during the remainder of the cycle in Tukey "A" post-test comparisons. Findings indicate therapists should consider pain perception and potential motivational changes of women during the premenstruum when developing or instituting physically demanding protocols.

The purpose of this study was to determine the methods and extent to which occupational therapists who are practicing in aging are assessing the caregivers of their elderly patients. A random sample of 500 therapists who subscribe to a special interest group publication of a professional organization were surveyed by mail and 204 responses were received. Respondents were asked to indicate all of the activities related to caregiver assessments in which they engage. Methods of assessment included: (a) professional caregiving activities, (b) informal assessment methods, and (c) formal assessment methods. There were more than 90% of respondents who indicated that they engaged in at least two professional activities related to caregiving, such as patient and/or caregiver education and discharge planning. Approximately one-third of subjects indicated that formal assessment is performed with a facility created assessment cited as the most frequently used formal instrument. Informal assessment methods were used by all but one subject in the sample. Direct questioning/discussion with caregiver and observation of the caregiver were the most frequently used informal assessment methods at 90% and 93.6%, respectively. The findings indicate that virtually all occupational therapists are highly engaged in assessing the caregivers of their elderly patients. Most of the assessment being performed relies on their clinical expertise and observation and/or facility created assessments. Furthermore, clinicians are highly engaged in patient and/or caregiver education. It is recommended that more of the body of research related to formal multidimensional caregiver assessment be disseminated into the occupational therapy community.

The study investigated whether individuals with a diagnosis of schizophrenia who completed a partial hospitalization program (PHP) while residing at an assisted living facility, engaged in more roles than individuals with schizophrenia who had never participated in a PHP. "Past," "present," and "future" role engagement was evaluated in both groups. Two hypotheses were pursued utilizing the Occupational Case Analysis Interview and Rating Scale (OCAIRS) and the Role Checklist. Frequencies, percentages, t-tests, and chi-square tests were used to analyze the data. No statistical differences were found in level of role engagement in the PHP group individuals as compared to the individuals not participating in the PHPs. The differences seen in role participation during involvement in the PHPs returned to pre-PHP levels up to twelve months after discharge, indicating the need for follow up services in order to sustain any gains made in the partial hospitalization programs.

Caregivers are often under a great deal of stress while caring for their spouses with dementia. It is when the stress builds up and becomes overwhelming that the caregiver is at risk for developing depression. The primary objective of this study was to determine which cognitive and behavioral coping strategies are associated with lower levels of depression; once these strategies are identified, interventions can be established to educate these caregivers. Thirty-two spousal caregivers participated in this study. They each filled out a questionnaire, which contained three sections. The first section asked them for demographic information about themselves and their spouses; the second section consisted of a coping strategies scale; and, the third section contained a depression scale. Results of this study indicate that problem-focused coping strategies were associated with a lesser degree of depressive symptomatology, whereas most of the emotion-focused strategies were associated with a greater degree of depressive symptomatology among the present sample of spousal caregivers. In addition, no relationship was found between the length of time providing care to their spouses and their level of depression.

This study investigated the effect of sleep position on breathing patterns of normal full term infants during quiet and active behavioral sleep states. Tidal volume, percent contribution of rib cage to tidal volume, and respiration rate were measured via respiratory inductive plethysmography (RIP) and pneumotachograph (PNT) in ten infants sleeping in supine versus right side-lying. Data was collected immediately following two consecutive feedings. Paired t tests and ANOVA comparisons showed no significant differences between the two postures (p < .05) in mean tidal volume (supine, M = 19.16, right side, M = 22.45), percent contribution of rib cage to tidal volume (supine, M = 30.55, right side M = 33.20), or respiration rate (supine, M = 49.13, right side, M = 49.37) during quiet sleep. Comparisons also showed no significant differences between the two postures (p < .05) in mean tidal volume (supine, M = 18.89, right side, M = 20.12), percent contribution of rib cage to tidal volume (supine, M = 6.43, right side, M = 6.97) or respiration rate (supine, M = 62.18, right side, M = 61.04) during active sleep. Therefore, no differences were found in the three respiratory variables measured between the supine and right side-lying positions. These findings suggest that infants may be positioned in either sleep position without detriment to respiratory function. This information may benefit occupational therapists and other health professionals involved in the education of parents on infant positioning and their respective advantages.

The purpose of this study was to obtain an understanding of older adults' perceptions of independence and the factors that allow them to remain living independently in the community. A questionnaire was mailed to a random sample of 500 community-based older adults. One hundred seventy eight questionnaires were returned (36%). Respondents were asked questions related to independence, self-health rating, functional difficulties, and social supports. Most respondents indicated Mental Health (97%), Physical Health (97%), Control of choices (97%), and Social Support Systems (93%) contributed to maintaining independence in the community. Age, education, fewer chronic health conditions, and a higher self-health rating were found to be significant predictors of actual independence. Family members were identified as the primary source of assistance with advice on major life decisions and financial matters. Findings indicate age, education, health status and the social support of family and friends all play an important role for older adults to live independently in the community. Occupational therapy could be instrumental in extending the health, highest level of independent functioning, and the number of years older adults remain living in the community.

Abstract not available