Date Presented 04/04/2025
There is a lack of consensus on evidence-based interventions that can be implemented by OTPs for LGBTQ+ youth. This poster will identify major intervention themes and gaps in the literature to best serve this population.
Primary Author and Speaker: Ricardo Daniel Ramirez
Additional Authors and Speakers: Francinne Fotopoulos, Alexandrea Guiritan, Iris Nosek, Annalise Valente
PURPOSE: Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) youth experience extensive health disparities (Hafeez et al., 2017). As a profession committed to promoting justice and self-determination, occupational therapy (OT) can support LGBTQ+ youth in a multitude of ways. However, most of the OT literature regarding LGBTQ+ youth is at its nascence (Leite & Lopes, 2022). Therefore, the objective of this proposal is to examine existing evidence-based interventions within the scope of OT for LGBTQ+ youth.
DESIGN: Electronic literature searches of PubMed, Scopus, PsycINFO, CINAHL, and Google Scholar were completed using the Arksey & O’Malley (2005) framework.
METHOD: Four reviewers screened 3,572 articles for the following inclusion criteria: 1) peer-reviewed intervention studies within the scope of OT; 2) primary focus on LGBTQ+ youth.
RESULTS: Preliminary results indicate that there is a lack of OT-led interventions designed for LGBTQ+ youth. While most evidence-based interventions for this group address mental health and are within the scope of OT, they are provided by other allied health professionals. There is a dearth of interventions designed to address the occupational needs of LGBTQ+ youth.
CONCLUSION: This is the first scoping review to examine evidence-based interventions for LGBTQ+ youth within the scope of OT. Preliminary findings reveal that mental health needs are primarily addressed yet occupation is frequently omitted.
IMPACT STATEMENT: To uphold OT’s commitment to justice and self-determination, OT practitioners must be equipped to not only provide evidence-based care to LGBTQ+ youth to address mental health but they are also called to craft culturally adapted and effective occupation-centered interventions.
References
Arksey, H., & O’Malley, L. (2005). Scoping studies: Towards a methodological framework. International Journal of Social Research Methodology: Theory & Practice, 8(1), 19–32. https://doi.org/10.1080/1364557032000119616
Hafeez, H., Zeshan, M., Tahir, M. A., Jahan, N., & Naveed, S. (2017). Health care disparities among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth: A literature review. Cureus, 9(4), e1184. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.1184
Leite, J. D., & Lopes, R. E. (2022). Dissident genders and sexualities in the occupational therapy peer-reviewed literature: A scoping review. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 76(5), 7605205160. https://doi.org/10.5014/ajot.2022.049322
