Date Presented 03/28/20
This research describes occupational-performance limitations experienced by postsecondary students following concussion. Students reported occupational-performance limitations in education, vocation, and social activities. All students reported performance limitations; no statistically significant differences were found between student athletes and nonathletes. The results indicate that there is a role for OT in postconcussion care to address occupational-performance limitations.
Primary Author and Speaker: Amanda Acord-Vira
Additional Authors and Speakers: Diana Davis
PURPOSE: This study examined post-secondary students’ experiences with occupational performance limitations following concussion. Previous research has focused on the signs and symptoms, recovery process, testing to determine readiness to resume normal activities (Scherer, et al., 2018), and protocols to guide return to activities (Baker, et al., 2014). There is limited research that assess the limitations in occupational performance that develop in those who have experienced a concussion and therefore may benefit from OT intervention (Rozbacher, et al., 2014). The research questions for this study were: (1), what are the occupational performance limitations experienced by post-secondary students following a concussion, (2) is there a difference between the occupational performance limitations experienced by post-secondary students who received their concussion as a result of a sport versus non-sport participation, (3) is there a difference between the occupational performance limitations experienced by gender.
DESIGN: This study followed a descriptive, quantitative survey based research design exploring the experiences of postsecondary students with occupational performance following concussion. Participants were currently enrolled post-secondary students who self-identified as having a concussion while enrolled a minimum of part-time. Following IRB acknowledgement, a nationwide sample was recruited via email and social media invitation to complete an online survey. There were 52 participants including 16 males and 36 females with an average age of 22.8 years.
METHOD: An online survey was modified from a previous research project (Acord-Vira, et al., 2019) to gain information from post-secondary students regarding the limitations experienced with occupational performance following concussion. The survey included multiple choice and Likert style questions. Students were provided a age and context appropriate list of 16 occupational performance areas and asked to indicate whether they experienced difficulty in performance as a result of their most recent concussion. IBM SPSS 25 was used to analyze the data. Descriptive statistics and Fisher’s Exact Test were used to answer the research questions.
RESULTS: The most frequently experienced occupational performance limitations included paying attention in class (82%), exercise (78%), and reading material for class (75%). The least frequently experienced performance areas were: participation in faith activities (28%) and relationships with significant others (46%). A Fishers Exact Test comparison revealed no significant difference in the severity of experienced occupational performance limitations between the group that experienced a sports related concussion (SRC) and those who experienced their concussion from other means. Females reported greater difficulty in reading (p<.05) while males reported greater difficulty in maintaining relationships with significant others (p<.05).
CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicate that post-secondary students who experience a concussion encounter limitations in occupational performance and therefore that they may benefit from Occupational Therapy intervention. The existing extra support available to current student-athletes did not mediate the effects on Occupational Performance.
IMPACT: Post-concussion care teams could be strengthened by the presence of occupational therapy to address limitations in occupational performance.
References
Acord-Vira, A., Curtis, R., Davis, D., & Wheeler, S. (2019). Returning to the classroom following sport-related concussion: Perspectives of college student athletes. Journal of Postsecondary Education & Disability, 32(1), 35–48. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=136781209
Baker, J. G., Rieger, B. P., McAvoy, K., Leddy, J. J., Master, C. L., Lana, S. J., & Willer, B. S. (2014). Principles for return to learn after concussion. International Journal of Clinical Practice, 68, 1286–1288. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijcp.12517
Rozbacher, A., Selci, E., Leiter, J., Ellis, M., & Russell K. (2017). The effect of concussion or mild traumatic brain injury on academic outcomes: A systematic review. Journal of Neurotrauma. Advance online publication. 1-41. doi: 10.1089/neu.2016.4765
Scherer, M. R., Weightman, M. M., Radomski, M. V., Smith, L., Finkelstein, M., Cecchini, A., … McCulloch, K. (2018). Measuring soldier performance during the patrol-exertion mulitask: Preliminary validation of a postconcussive functional return-to-duty metric. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 99(Suppl. 1), S79–S85. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apmr.2017.04.012
