Wetenschappelijk Tijdschrift voor Ergotherapie

In the thesis entitled Occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech therapy for persons with neuromuscular diseases – An evidence-based orientation, research is aimed at ‘appropriate’ or ‘more efficient’ allied health care for persons with a neuromuscular disease (NMD) from three perspectives: 1) from a professional perspective: what therapy is advised by occupational therapists, physical therapists and speech therapists from a neuromuscular expert centre?; 2) from scientific perspective: for which interventions is scientific evidence available? and 3) from client perspective: how does a muscular disease influence the life of couples with myotonic dystrophy? From professional perspective, the advice is that, compared to usual care, more persons with NMD receive a short period of goal-directed allied health care or advice during a one off consultation. From scientific perspective, the evidence for allied health care for persons with NMD is sparse. There is evidence for the effectiveness of aerobic training in muscle disease. An important finding is that muscle strengthening exercises are not harmful, but also not effective. From client perspective, the care for persons with myotonic dystrophy is fragmented with emphasis on the physical problems and virtually ignoring the psychosocial and cognitive consequences and its impact on daily life of persons with the disease and their next of kin. These conclusions result in recommendations for improvement of allied health care and research for persons with NMD and their next of kin.
Keywords: neuromuscular diseases, professional reasoning, systematic reviews, qualitative research

Play is a primary occupation of children. Two instruments designed to measure play participation are the Test of Playfulness (ToP) and the Test Of Environmental Supportiveness (TOES). The ToP measures the playfulness of children and the TOES provides information about the influence of the environment on the playfulness of the child. Together they provide information about the play participation of the child and the way play can be promoted in everyday life. Literature review shows that the ToP and TOES are clinically promising outcome measures. The clinimetric properties of the ToP and the TOES and the importance for pediatric occupational therapists of using instruments to measure play participation are discussed in this article.

Aim: The development and evaluation of the Dutch preventive Healthy and Active Ageing program – inspired by the Lifestyle Redesign® program – for community-dwelling seniors in different contexts, in order to enable them to living independently for longer, while maintaining health and well-being.
Methods: The program was performed in seven different contexts, for different groups of seniors. Through an action research project the evolving process was evaluated. During the process, data were collected from the participants, occupational therapists (group facilitators of the programme) and other stakeholders. Both qualitative and quantitative analyses were performed. Insights obtained during the research project were fed back in order to improve the program progressively.
Findings: Recruitment of the intended participants was difficult. The content of the program fitted to the wishes and needs of the participants, however, not in the same way in all contexts. The methodology of the program and approach of the group facilitators showed a more problem-based way of working, instead of empowering the participants. Most of the seniors participating in the program were satisfied about it. They reported changes in thinking, not or less in their occupational performance.
Conclusion: The results of the research project show that the program is promising, but also that adaptations are needed in the manual, the approach by the group facilitators, and the recruitment of participants.

Background: Laptops are often advised to children with physical disability to enable their participation at mainstream or special education. However, children do not always use laptops during lessons. So far, little is known about the experiences related to laptop use during lessons.
Aim: The aim of this study was to get insight into experiences of teachers and children with physical disabilities between the ages of 8 to 12 years with laptop use during the lessons at primary schools in the Limburg region.
Method: Semi structured in-depth interviews were carried out with four teachers and five children. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used for the processing and analysing of the interviews.
Conclusion: The importance and the added value of laptop use, which enables children to participate better during lessons, were expressed by both children and teachers. However, they reported that the laptop can also cause obstacles at specific moments during lessons. According to the respondents, personal factors such as empathy and support from the social environment can influence the effectiveness of laptop use.