The American Journal of Occupational Therapy: Official Publication of the American Occupational Therapy Association
OBJECTIVE: We reviewed the efficacy of occupational therapy-related interventions for adults with rheumatoid arthritis. METHOD: We examined 51 Level I studies (19 physical activity, 32 psychoeducational) published 2000-2014 and identified from five databases. Interventions that focused solely on the upper or lower extremities were not included. RESULTS: Findings related to key outcomes (activities of daily living, ability, pain, fatigue, depression, self-efficacy, disease symptoms) are presented. Strong evidence supports the use of aerobic exercise, resistive exercise, and aquatic therapy.
OBJECTIVE: To examine the feasibility and benefits of the Merging Yoga and Occupational Therapy (MY-OT) intervention. DESIGN: This is the primary analysis of a non-controlled pretest-posttest pilot study to understand the feasibility and impact of MY-OT on balance, balance self-efficacy, and fall risk factor management in people with chronic stroke. SETTING: University research laboratory.
Like other complex, multifaceted interventions in medicine, meditation represents a mixture of specific and not-so-specific elements of therapy. However, meditation is somewhat unique in that it is difficult to standardize, quantify, and authenticate for a given sample of research subjects. Thus, it is often challenging to discern its specific effects in order to satisfy the scientific method of causal inferences that underlies evidence-based medicine. Therefore, it is important to consider the key methodological challenges that affect both the design and analysis of meditation research.
Like other complex, multifaceted interventions in medicine, meditation represents a mixture of specific and not-so-specific elements of therapy. However, meditation is somewhat unique in that it is difficult to standardize, quantify, and authenticate for a given sample of research subjects. Thus, it is often challenging to discern its specific effects in order to satisfy the scientific method of causal inferences that underlies evidence-based medicine. Therefore, it is important to consider the key methodological challenges that affect both the design and analysis of meditation research.
OBJECTIVE: To examine the feasibility and benefits of the Merging Yoga and Occupational Therapy (MY-OT) intervention. DESIGN: This is the primary analysis of a non-controlled pretest-posttest pilot study to understand the feasibility and impact of MY-OT on balance, balance self-efficacy, and fall risk factor management in people with chronic stroke. SETTING: University research laboratory.
BACKGROUND: High levels of stress have been identified in medical students and increasingly in other health profession student population groups. As stress can affect psychological well-being and interfere with learning and clinical performance, there is a clear argument for universities to include health professional student well-being as an outcome in core curriculum. Mindfulness training is a potential construct to manage stress and enhance academic success.
AIM: To review the effects of mindfulness-based interventions on Registered Nurses and nursing students. BACKGROUND: Work-related stress among nurses is estimated to be the biggest occupational health problem after musculoskeletal disorders. DESIGN: A mixed-method systematic review incorporating quantitative and qualitative data was conducted.
Manifestations of stress and anger are becoming more evident in society. Anger, an emotion associated with stress, often affects other aspects of everyday life, including the workplace and the educational setting. Stress and irrational anger in nursing students presents a potential teaching-learning problem that requires innovative evidence-based solutions. In this article, anger in nursing students is discussed, and background information on the topic is provided.
BACKGROUND: Low back pain is often accepted as a "normal" part of pregnancy. Despite research suggesting that quality of life for women who are pregnant is adversely affected, most are advised to self-manage. Although the use of acupuncture for the management of persistent nonspecific low back pain has been recommended in recent UK national guidelines, its use in the management of pregnancy-related low back pain remains limited.
Men with prostate cancer are likely to have a long illness and experience psychological distress for which supportive care may be helpful. This systematic review describes the evidence for effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of supportive care for men with prostate cancer, taking into account treatment pathway and components of interventions. MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, CENTRAL, and Psychinfo were searched from inception--July 2013 for randomized controlled trials and controlled trials. Two authors independently assessed risk of bias and extracted data.
