Establishing best practice in seating assessment for children with physical disabilities using qualitative...

Area of Science:

• Rehabilitation
• Occupational Therapy
• Assistive Technology

Background:

• Seating assessment is crucial for children requiring specialized equipment.
• Current practices in the UK and Ireland exhibit significant regional variation.
• A need exists to define and implement best practice standards.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify best practice components in children's seating assessments within the UK and Ireland.
• To explore the current state of seating assessment practices.
• To establish consensus on ideal assessment procedures.

Main Methods:

• Observational study of six seating assessments across three centers.
• Utilized an 83-item checklist based on existing literature.
• Employed a Delphi technique with seven expert therapists to achieve consensus on best practice themes.

Main Results:

• Only problem identification and prescription were consistently observed.
• Standardized assessment methods were notably absent in observed practices.
• Consensus was reached on the importance and desirability of 'assessment process' and 'assessment approach' themes.

Conclusions:

• Significant variation exists in regional seating assessment practices.
• Agreement on theoretical best practice components highlights a gap between theory and practice.
• A consistent, standardized approach to seating assessment is needed, potentially through a dedicated tool.