Understanding and Enhancing Occupational Therapists' Use of Standard Family-Centered Measures

The use of standard family-centered measures (FCMs) is imperative to guide family-centered care (FCC) interventions and monitor their outcomes.

To measure the frequency of FCM use and evaluate the effectiveness of experiential learning and reflection to increase their use.

Descriptive and two-group pre-post comparative training study.

Continuing education center.

Phase 1 included 145 health care providers. Phase 2 included 44 school-based occupational therapists who participated in Phase 1.

Phase 2 participants enrolled in 30-hr FCC training that included a 2-hr workshop on FCM. One group (n = 22) conducted an FCM with a family and wrote a reflective report.

All participants completed the Measure of Processes of Care-Service Provider (MPOC-SP) questionnaire and reported how frequently they used FCMs.

FCM use rates were low (50%, not at all; 26%, to a very small extent). The extent of FCC was correlated with FCM use (r = .24-.30, p < .01). A Wilcoxon signed-rank test demonstrated that participants who administered an FCM with a family and reflected on this experience showed significant increases (Z = 176.0, p = .001) in FCM use compared with participants who were only instructed about available FCM. A Mann-Whitney U test confirmed the difference (U = 3.54, p = .012).

FCM use is sparse, but experiential and reflective activities are simple keys to promoting FCC and integrating FCM into practice. What This Article Adds: Training designers, educators, and managers should consider integrating experiential learning to enhance providers' expertise and quality of care.