Assessing Unmet Needs of Caregivers after Stroke: Occupational Therapist Practices and Perspectives

• Published in: The open journal of occupational therapy 2020-04, Vol.8 (2), p.1-13
• Main Authors: Clymer, Deborah R, Fields, Hadley A, Kniepmann, Kathy
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Analysis; caregiver assessment; caregiver needs; caregiver preparedness; Caregivers; College students; Conferences and conventions; Families & family life; Family; family caregivers; Mental health; Mixed methods research; Occupational therapy; Production management; Rehabilitation; Setting (Literature); Stroke; Therapists; Time
• ISSN: 2168-6408; 2168-6408
• DOI: 10.15453/2168-6408.1653

Background: Family caregivers of stroke survivors often feel unprepared and overwhelmed post discharge with numerous unmet needs. Occupational therapists can play an integral role in addressing family caregivers' needs. Limited research exists on assessment practices of occupational therapists in identifying caregivers' needs poststroke. This study explores the practices and perspectives of occupational therapists in assessing unmet caregivers' needs. Method: A cross-sectional, mixed methods research design was used to electronically survey 15 occupational therapists. Part 1 of the survey explored participant methods for identifying caregivers' needs and their views on using formal caregiver assessment tools. Part 2 gathered participant perspectives on three selected caregiver assessments. Descriptive statistics and thematic analysis were used to interpret the data. Results: The participants perceive formal assessments as benefcial. However, they use informal strategies to assess the unmet needs of caregivers rather than formal assessment. Reimbursement challenges, productivity pressure, and questionable necessity are barriers to conducting formal assessments. Advantages and disadvantages of each assessment are discussed. Conclusion: Occupational therapists face barriers to conducting formal assessment across settings. Implementation of recent policies is needed to further support occupational therapy's role in addressing caregivers' needs. This study can inform future development of assessment tools tailored to occupational therapy. Comments The authors report that they have no conficts of interest to disclose. Keywords caregiver assessment, caregiver needs, caregiver preparedness, family caregivers, occupational therapy, stroke Cover Page Footnote We thank all occupational therapists who took the time to participate in this study. We would also like to thank others in Dr. Kniepmann's Family Caregiving Lab who contributed to this study while they were graduate students. Some of the information from an earlier version of this manuscript was shared in a poster at the American Occupational Therapy Association 2019 Annual Conference and Expo on April 5, 2019. Credentials Display Deborah Clymer, MSOT/S; Hadley Fields, EdM, MSOT/S; Kathy Kniepmann, OTD, MPH, EdM, OTR/L Copyright transfer agreements are not obtained by The Open Journal of Occupational Therapy (OJOT). Reprint permission for this Applied Research should be obtained from the corresponding author(s)