Date of Award

2014

Degree Type

Open Access Thesis

Document Type

Master Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy

First Advisor

Lynnda J. Emery

Department Affiliation

Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy

Abstract

The following study was conducted on a Senior Behavioral Health Unit at Mercy Hospital Western Hills. The unit specialized in psychiatric services structured to meet the needs of patients 65 years of age and older. The purpose of the study was to measure the self-perceived improvement in occupational performance in five patients on a geropsychiactric unit who participated in therapeutic activities.

The literature review includes information related to various diagnoses most often seen on the behavioral unit. Additionally, literature about the assessment and screening tools utilized in the study was reviewed. Literature pertaining to therapeutic activities provided on the unit and a highlighted table on literature related to progressive muscle relaxation is presented.

This study is quantitative and pre-experimental. The Canadian Occupational Performance Measure (COPM) was administered as a pretest-posttest. Following participation in therapeutic activities, the differences among COPM scores was explored. Three of the five participants increased their performance score ratings on the COPM by two or more points. Four of the five participants increased their satisfaction score ratings on the COPM by two or more points. Discussion and clinical implications of the results noted will conclude the thesis.

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