Abstract:

The purpose of this study was to explore how older persons with cognitive impairment use assistive devices, determine the long-term impact of occupational therapy (OT) interventions involving assisitive devices used by this sample and investigate informal caregivers' perception of the value of previous OT interventions. Study particpants included 10 older persons with cognitive impairment who previously recieved OT interventions involving assistive devices and their paid caregivers. A health survey, a caregiver survey, the functional independence measure (FIM), instrumental daily living activities (IADLs) and the Mini-Mental Status Exmaination (MMSE) as well as an open-ended questionnaire were administered. The use of assistive devices by study participants and caregivers' perspectives of the previous OT intervention were reported.