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Evaluating ADL measures from an occupational therapy perspective
Sheryl Klein1, Ingrid Barlow, Vivien Hollis
1Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Sheryl.Klein@capitalhealth.ca
Background:
Measures reflecting occupational therapy's conceptualization of occupational performance support the profession's contribution to evidence-based practice and fiscal accountability.
Purpose:
This study compared measures of performance-based activities of daily living (ADL) with principles of occupational therapy practice and intended outcomes.
Methods:
Using an action research study design, occupational therapists and researchers (N= 13) systematically clarified the clinical problem, identified occupational therapy principles inherent to the assessment of daily living activity via nominal group technique; defined the key principles as constructs; and reframed these constructs as a questionnaire against which 18 published standardized ADL measures were evaluated.
Findings:
Participants identified six measures as most congruent with principles of occupational therapy practice: ADL Profile, Assessment of Motor and Process Skills, Functional Performance Measure, Rivermead ADL Assessment, Edmans ADL Index, and Melville-Nelson Self-Care Assessment.
Implications:
Findings guide occupational therapists' search and use of performance-based ADL measures that demonstrate the profession's distinct health care contribution.
