Parent Satisfaction of Occupational Therapy Interventions for Pediatrics

Purpose: This review seeks to identify the tools used to determine parent satisfaction with OT interventions for a variety of pediatric conditions. The purpose of this review was to explore whether the research on the effectiveness of OT interventions for children has addressed the important concept of parent satisfaction. There is limited OT research that evaluates parent satisfaction in pediatrics. Greater parent satisfaction with OT services results in better treatment adherence for pediatric care.Design: A scoping review.Methods: Five studies met the inclusion criteria. In total, there were 139 participants within the five studies that were examined. Five studies explored parent satisfaction as an outcome measure of OT interventions for pediatric populations. Assessment methods and findings were extracted from the selected studies. Information regarding the assessment tools used to determine parent satisfaction was extracted. Also extracted were the results of the satisfaction assessments used by the studies.Results: The study designs included four qualitative studies and one randomized control trial. Tools used to measure parent satisfaction, included the MPOC-20, MPOC-56, COPM, GAS and the CSQ. Best practice for OT's include, facilitating goal setting with clients and communicating efficiently with parents, allowing them to ask questions for comprehension of the clinical aspects, explaining the child's procedures and providing follow up time to discuss improvements or setbacks.Conclusion: The studies reviewed suggest there may be value in understanding parent consideration and working as a cohesive, interdisciplinary team for the overall benefit of a child.Discussion: To provide optimal holistic care to pediatric patients, cooperation with the parents can be an asset to the therapeutic process. Parents can be OTs advocates regarding health care for their children.