Occupational Therapy for Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Survey on the Level of Involvement and Training Needs of Therapists

Abstract

There has been a substantial increase in clinical activity related to the identification and treatment of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in the United Kingdom. The accurate diagnosis and successful management of children with ADHD requires a multifaceted evaluation and treatment package provided by a team of medical, psychological, educational and therapy professionals. Occupational therapists can make distinctive contributions in the processes of evaluation, diagnosis and multifaceted intervention. A national survey was carried out to investigate the level and nature of involvement of paediatric occupational therapists in services for children with ADHD in the United Kingdom. The learning needs of the therapists were also explored in this survey. A questionnaire was sent to all 941 members of the National Association of Paediatric Occupational Therapists. The response rate of this survey was 30%, that is, 282 completed questionnaires were returned. The results showed that only 8.5% of the therapists who responded had involvement in a designated service for children with ADHD. Twenty-seven per cent of the therapists indicated that they did not see children with ADHD. The 63.8% of therapists who did see children with ADHD as part of their overall caseload in a community service did so mainly because of the children's associated problems in different sensory, perceptual, motor and functional performance areas. The reasons for non-involvement are explored and discussed and the learning needs of the therapists and their preferred modes of training are identified.