Long-term health and quality of life experiences of Vietnam veterans with combat-related limb loss.

Purpose: This paper describes the long-term health and quality of life (QOL) outcomes of Vietnam veterans with combat-related limb loss.

Methods: This mixed-method, cross-sectional study analyzes survey data of 247 Vietnam veterans with combat-related limb loss measuring several comorbidities [measured as ever diagnosed], PTSD using the PTSD Checklist Military (PCL-M), depression using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-8), and QOL using the SF-12. In-depth interviews with 20 such veterans about their health and QOL experiences were conducted.

Allied health program outcomes assessment in an international context: an example from South Africa.

This paper describes a process of outcomes assessment for a health sciences program in radiology at a university in South Africa. Its purpose is to demonstrate that while the process of outcomes assessment is universal, and can be used both nationally and internationally as long as underlying premises are met, assessment needs to be considered within the context of a country's unique culture, society and history.

Health professionals' enactment of their accountability obligations: doing the best they can.

In the current context of health care, health professionals' accountability obligations may be more extensive than the degree of autonomy that they are permitted to exercise. To date, how professionals fulfil their obligations with regard to this potential for dissonance has not been investigated. The purpose of this Grounded Theory study was to examine how one professional group, occupational therapists, enacted their accountability obligations within their current practice context.

Consumer participation in the employment rehabilitation process: contextual factors and implications for practice.

Rehabilitation models of practice have emerged that offer persons' with disabilities opportunities to have an active role in the work entry or re(entry) process. Despite the growth and interest in empowering client involvement in practice, consumer views on the determinants of participation are not fully understood. Thus, consumer feedback on using a self-directed approach to employment rehabilitation was elicited to identify factors integral to their participation in the process.

Assistive technology and handwriting problems: what do occupational therapists recommend?

Background: Handwriting difficulties for students are a common reason for referral to occupational therapy. Little research evidence is available concerning the factors guiding technology recommendations for these children.

Purpose: The objective of this survey research was to describe the technology-related recommendations and factors involved in the decisions made by Canadian occupational therapists for these students.

The process of outcome assessment in a school of allied health sciences.

This article describes a process of outcome assessment for a school of allied health sciences to assist others who may be involved in a similar endeavor. In the mid-1990s, the Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) Office of Planning and Institutional Improvement charged each of the schools on its campus with developing a process to determine how and to what degree students were meeting the IUPUI Principles of Undergraduate Education; the focus was on student learning. The administration and faculty of the School of Allied Health Sciences decided to expand the assessment from student learning to include assessment of the school's five goal statements, which were part of its mission.

Physical therapist student interest in full-time faculty positions.

A strong demand exists for allied health faculty in institutions of higher education. This study focused on physical therapists for the purposes of: 1) determining student physical therapist interest in full-time faculty positions at some point in their professional careers, 2) identifying factors that might influence student interest in full-time faculty positions at some point in their careers, and 3) being able to suggest ways in which students might be encouraged to consider academic careers in the future. Twenty-nine accredited professional physical therapist programs gave permission for their graduating students to be surveyed; 1,160 surveys were sent out, and 1,037 usable surveys were returned (89% return rate).