Date of Award

2017

Document Type

Scholarly Project

Degree Name

Master of Occupational Therapy (MOT)

Department

Occupational Therapy

First Advisor

Cherie Graves

Keywords

Burns -- rehabilitation; Child; Caregivers -- education; Parents -- education

Abstract

Children are the most vulnerable population and represent the highest rate of nonfatal burns resulting in prolonged hospitalization, disfigurement, and disability. These injuries can be a severely stressful experience for children and their families. As a result, it is important for the patient and family members to not focus only on immediate treatment, but recognize the importance of long-term care following discharge in order to effectively reintegrate the child back into the home and community.

A literature review was conducted to investigate the key components of burn care throughout the duration of recovery. Research identified that many parents feel helpless, incompetent, or unqualified to provide the adequate care their child needs following discharge from a pediatric burn inpatient rehabilitation facility. While parents are provided with educational material and therapeutic interventions, there is currently a lack of information addressing if parents are compliant with their child’s treatment plan.

To address this need, the goal of this project is to develop an online resource tool that occupational therapists can utilize with caregivers of children who have sustained a burn injury. The goal is to empower parents by educating them on how to manage the needs of their child and to increase compliance prior to their child being discharged from an inpatient rehabilitation facility. This scholarly project will utilize the Model of Human Occupation (MOHO) and the adult learning theory to not only educate the parents, but increase their level of confidence so they are able to successfully meet the physical and psychosocial needs of their child at home and in the community.

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