Date of Award

2022

Document Type

Scholarly Project

Degree Name

Doctor of Occupational Therapy (OTD)

Department

Occupational Therapy

First Advisor

Cherie Graves

Abstract

Recreation, social participation, and leisure are important occupations of children, however, children with disabilities participate in them less frequently and more often with parents when compared to their typically developing (TD) peers (Lin, 2020; Schreuer et al., 2014; Solish et al., 2010). Therapeutic summer camps have been shown to reduce these disparities in participation while achieving positive functional gains (Flynn et al., 2019; Guest et al., 2017; Kaboski et al., 2015; Petersen et al., 2020; Sakzewski et al., 2015; Sterman et al., 2016; Walker et al., 2010; Yang et al., 2021). However, few summer camp programs are available for occupational therapy practitioners to use. The purpose of this scholarly project was to develop an all-inclusive guide to running a therapeutic summer camp and to help to mitigate the occupational imbalance that children with disabilities face. The author of the product partnered with a pediatric outpatient therapy clinic, conducted an in-depth literature review, an on-site needs assessment, and synthesized all collected data to create the current product. The final product, Hook’d on ‘Arrdenture’: A Pirate-Themed Recreation Day Camp, includes program goals, activity descriptions, staff training materials, financial considerations, marketing materials, sustainability recommendations, evaluation methods, and relevant handouts for implementation of the program. It is anticipated that the final product will aid pediatric therapy practitioners in providing supported recreation, social, and leisure participation opportunities while helping to reverse the participation gap that children with disabilities face.

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