Occupational Therapy (Conference Papers)

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  • Publication
    'I'm letting them down': The perceived challenges for women when making life changes for health
    (University of Galway, 2023-09) Fox, Jackie; Erlandsson, Lena-Karin; Shiel, Agnes
    Background: ReDO-10® is a 10-week group programme facilitated by occupational therapists to support people make changes to daily activities for a more satisfying and balanced everyday life. The programme was piloted in primary care in Ireland for women with psychological distress. While women reported positive outcomes, there were social/personal challenges and resources that influenced how well all women were able to make life changes. The objectives of this analysis were to understand (1) the personal/social challenges women faced when trying to implement new daily strategies for better wellbeing and (2) the personal/social resources that supported their efforts. Methods: Three ReDO®-10 groups were facilitated in 2019-2020 (n=21). Fourteen women were interviewed after their participation. Data was analysed using directed content analysis with the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) as a coding framework. Findings: The TDF-guided analysis showed that women faced significant challenges in capabilities, motivation and opportunities when trying new strategies. Beliefs about their own capabilities and about the consequences changes would have on others were particularly influential. Socially, women with children and partners were supported or hindered in making changes by interpersonal factors in the home and their own beliefs about their social roles/identities. Discussion: Those that attend healthcare interventions inhabit a life context and have personal strengths, challenges and resources that can influence how likely health behaviour change is for them. Future adaptations of ReDO®-10 can include more resources to better support women as they try to make changes to daily activities
  • Publication
    Dating with a diagnosis: The lived experience of people with multiple sclerosis
    (SAGE Publications, 2020-12-07) Tabassum, Kinza; Fox, Jackie; Fuller, Sara; Hynes, Sinéad
    Background: With an average age of onset of about 20-40 years, MS usually manifests during early adulthood, which is considered to be a critical period for the development and maintenance of relationships particularly dating and romantic relationships. People with MS can experience sexual dysfunction, fatigue, pain, reduced mood and bladder/bowel dysfunction. These difficulties can affect a person s ability to participate in many meaningful activities, including those that affect relationships dating, preparing meals, engaging in sexual intercourse and others. Research in the area has explored the experiences of people with MS in long-term relationships or in marriage. However, an increasing number of people are not in long-term relationships in their 20 s, 30 s and beyond. It is known that dating or entering romantic relationships has been shown to be difficult for those with physical disabilities who face stigma, negative societal attitudes and the fear of requiring care from potential partners. The experience of those with a progressive, complex condition like MS has not been explored in detail to date. Objectives: To develop a rich understanding of the impact of MS on romantic relationships and occupations related to dating. To better understand how living with a progressive, early-onset condition such as MS, interacts with/influences developing romantic relationships. Methods: This study used a descriptive phenomenological design. Data were collected through two online focus group. A purposive sampling strategy was implemented to identify participants that have relevant knowledge or experience to address the research topic. Participants self-recruited by contacting the authors. Participants were excluded if they (i) were co-habiting with a partner or married (ii) had a comorbid diagnosis of a neurological disorder or (iii) were not able to provide informed consent. The authors used Colaizzi s (1978) descriptive phenomenological method to analyse the data. Results: Six females and two males participated in the focus groups. Participants were aged between 23-37 years and had a diagnosis of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis. Years since MS diagnosis ranged from 4-16 years. Dating with a diagnosis of MS is a highly personal phenomenon, characterised by many individual differences in values and experiences. Core to the phenomenon were the process of personal decision-making about disclosure of the diagnosis, considerations about dating and couple-focused activities that were limited by pain or fatigue and ongoing adaptation to the fluctuating nature of the condition with partners in new/developing relationships. Planning for and engaging in dating was considered by some participants to be emotionally exhausting. Conclusions: There were a range of experiences of dating and relationships across the participants in the study. Participants discussed the most salient issues specific to dating with MS including diagnosis
  • Publication
    Occupational therapy-led interventions for people with anxiety disorders - impact on functioning and mental health symptoms
    (Royal College of Occupational Therapists, 2018-06-11) Fox, Jackie; Erlandsson, Lena-Karin; Shiel, Agnes
    Anxiety is prevalent and is associated with loss of functioning in occupations like work and household management (Kessler et al, 2009). But the effectiveness of occupational therapy interventions to improve functioning for this population was under-researched. This systematic review aimed to determine the effectiveness of occupational therapy interventions to improve functioning and mental health outcomes for individuals with anxiety disorders. The systematic review included studies involving (a) individuals with anxiety and stress-related disorders over 18 years, (b) outcomes relating to functioning and/or mental health, and (c) interventions designed/led/facilitated by an occupational therapist. Eleven databases were searched for literature published from 1994 to 2016. Data extraction was performed by the first author and independently reviewed by the other authors. The studies were critically appraised for methodological quality (Law and MacDermid, 2014). The review found 24 papers describing 18 individual studies. Because the nature of the interventions varied, narrative analysis was used rather than meta-analysis. Two RCT studies showed that occupational therapy-led interventions have the potential to improve anxiety symptoms (Garvey et al, 2015, Lambert et al, 2007). Smaller studies without control groups also showed positive results on mental health assessments. Functioning was measured in 11 studies out of the 18 reviewed. Studies particularly targeting life skills such as driving and home management showed emerging potential. Occupational therapy interventions have the potential to improve functioning and mental health outcomes for people with anxiety, but require replication in larger studies to inform practice (Ashby et al, 2015).
  • Publication
    The impact of social anxiety on the occupational participation of third-level students
    (NUI Galway, 2015) Fox, Jackie; Clarke, Jenny; |~|
    [No abstract available]
  • Publication
    A qualitative study of the impact of sleep loss on the daily lives of working mothers
    (NUI Galway, 2017-06-15) McEneaney, Eimear; Fox, Jackie; |~|
    Background: Working mothers are a population who experience sleep disruption and sleep loss on an ongoing basis. While this has been explored in several studies, there are no studies examining the impact this has on their participation in daily life activities and roles. This qualitative study aimed to explore the perceived impact of sleep disruption on the quality of performance of daily life activities, as well as participation in other life roles such as work and family life. Method: This study used a descriptive phenomenological design. One-to-one semi-structured interviews were carried out with five women who were working at the time of the study and had at least one child under six. A thematic analysis was carried out in order to create four major themes from the data gathered. Results: Sleep loss was found to impact on women in four main ways. Of particular concern was the significant impact on both performance and participation in work activities. All the participants described feeling tired in work, with an impact on their attention and ability to focus on work. Others described an increase in making mistakes, losing their patience with colleagues and a decrease in problem-solving capabilities. Two participants felt that sleep deprivation had prevented them from progressing their careers, with one saying she had not put her name forward for promotion, with tiredness contributing to this, and another saying she could not further her learning at work or stay after work to learn new techniques. In addition, the participation of working mothers in leisure, relaxation or self-care activities was seriously compromised. Conclusion: This study explored how sleep deprivation impacts working mothers. The considerable impact on work activities requires consideration by employers, and gives some insight into the daily challenges faced by working mothers during this period of their lives.
  • Publication
    Planning effective clinical teaching encounters for Occupational Therapy Students: strategies to improve bedside teaching
    (NUI Galway, 2012-04-20) Fox, Jackie; |~|
    [No abstract available]
  • Publication
    A systematic review of the effectiveness of occupational therapy interventions for improving functioning and mental health for individuals with anxiety and stress-related disorders
    (ISAD LONDON 2017, 2017-07-06) Fox, Jackie; Erlandsson, Lena-Karin; Shiel, Agnes; |~|
    [No abstract available]
  • Publication
    Making internationalisation a reality for occupational therapy students (MIROTS) - a community engagement project
    (Community Knowledge Initiative, NUI Galway, 2017-06-14) Fox, Jackie; Hynes, Sinéad; Ekstam, Lisa; Orban, Kristina; Shiel, Agnes; Truman, Juliette
    Occupational therapists support and enable people to partake in occupations or activities that are important to them; that they need/want/are expected to do. Occupational therapists are increasingly involved in services addressing the impact that social inequalities can have on peoples wellbeing. One way in which occupational therapy students in NUI Galway learn relevant skills is through service learning and community engagement. This presentation reports on an Erasmus-funded project called, Making Internationalisation a Reality for Occupational Therapy Students (MIROTS) that saw students participating in international collaboration and community engagement with a focus on social injustice. The MIROTS programme consisted of both a physical and web-exchange between NUI Galway, University of Southampton and Lund University, Sweden. During the physical exchange students from the three universities collaborated for a week in Lund, Sweden, and worked in partnership with charitable organisations to develop and design solutions to real life challenges. The groups included organisations for people with gambling addictions, unaccompanied refugee children, unemployed young people, people with mental health problems and people who are homeless. Through the project work students developed an understanding of the needs of these socially excluded groups and demonstrated a commitment as health professionals to addressing their needs. Students, in partnership with organisations in their own countries and in Lund, will make a sustainable contribution to these marginalized groups, so that all parties benefit from the exchange. These contributions could include some education for staff, videos raising awareness of a social exclusion issue, or a plan for improving the health of the populations. During the exchange students learned about health-care and services in Ireland, the UK and Sweden and different theoretical frameworks used. The web-exchange allowed for reflection and debate on topics relating to injustice and occupation. The project offered students and staff opportunities to share teaching and research ideas with one another. It also demonstrated to students how they might go about influencing the research and global health agendas. This project is funded by Erasmus and KA2 Cooperation for Innovation and the Exchange of Good Practices, Strategic Partnerships for higher education.