The Effects of Pets Therapy on Disabled - Case Study Example

OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY 142 REPORT “The Effects of ‘Pets as Therapy’ on persons with dementia in a psychiatric ward” The focus of this study ison the effects that pets would have if used as Therapy on persons with dementia in a Psychiatric Ward. There are three reasons as to why this study was undertaken. One of the reasons was to establish whether pets can be used for therapeutic purposes to assist people recover from illnesses or even disabilities. The second reason was to establish the additional advantages of animal-based therapy on the disabled other than just making the victims happy. Thirdly, this study was aimed at providing Occupational Therapy Service to the disabled victims with an aim of improving the quality of their life through providing them an environment that would allow for their efficient functioning. In a major Psychiatric hospital, Patients suffering from Alzheimer’s Dementia were selected. These patients were from two wards that had been closely matched. Using a rating scale, these patients were tested and the data collected. This involved randomly selecting and placing the patients into two different wards. These wards were the experimental ward and the control ward. Measurements on their daily functioning, noise level as well as physiology were made. INTRODUCTION Of the Alzheimer’s patients with the most difficulty, forty were selected after which they were placed into either the experimental or control wards. The London Psycho-Geriatric Rating Scale (LPRS) was applied by the researchers in testing the different measure. The researchers tested the heart rates of twenty of the patients in the experimental ward with and without the presence of a pet. Twenty patients were also chosen from both the experimental and control wards and their noise level tested according to a scale, before and after the presence of a pet. The expectation was to have the heart rate and noise level decrease due to the presence of a pet. DISCUSSION From the results of the research it can be deduced that, people recovering from disability or other illnesses can obtain many therapeutic benefits from pets. This was evidenced by the fact that the presence of a pet would result to a reduced heart rate in a patient suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. This implies that the presence of a pet has a relaxation effect on the patient. Exercising the pet also adds more benefit to the patient. From the study it was also evident that the presence of the pet led to a reduction of the general noise level in the ward implying enjoyment of the pet’s company by the patients. As such, some of the benefits enjoyed by the patients included the presence of something to talk to and someone welcoming them thus reducing their loneliness and making them more relaxed. In Psychiatric wards, such an environment is considered essential since otherwise, a deterioration of the patients’ condition and a rise in noise level would be witnessed due the increase in stress levels and a rise in hospital care. On the other hand, the study needed an improvement, since the results of the LPRS and BCABS scales turned out to be insignificant. This is because the researchers are the ones who measure the scores on the rating scales. There is likelihood that this would be different if the measurement is done by testers with different perceptions regarding rating performance. Mental confusion, physical disability and socially irritating behavior are measured by the LPRS. Having separate rating scales for each of these is better since there may exist a patient who is sociable and at the same time very confused and disorientated hence leading to the tester giving a lower score. Although there was a decline in the heart rate in the presence of a pet, there was no clear explanation of what exactly transpired between the disabled patient and the pet. There is a likelihood of having more interaction with the pet by some of the patients than others thus subsequently affecting the results. It would also be important to consider the exact time that the noise level is recorded. This is because in the late afternoon it would be quieter as compared to lunchtime. The test would give better results if the noise level is tested at different times during the day. There are other variables that may have affected the study’s outcome. One of them is the sample size. A larger sample size would give a more representative result. Other factors would include individual’s physical ability and motivation to participate as well as variability in data recording for the different tests. There are some patients who may feel nervous because of having new people search us researchers record their heart rates. Another factor likely to affect the results would be the patient’s stage of illness. Patients who are chronically ill or disabled would less interact with the pet as compared to healthier individuals. This implies that for the chronically ill patients, the interaction would not affect their heart rate or physical ability and instead it would increase their frustration. RESULTS The data available was used to test five hypotheses one of them, being whether the presence of the pet led to a decline in the heart rate. The statistical test used was the paired t-test. 0.0001 was the p-value hence leading to the rejection of the null hypothesis that the presence of the pet led to no change in heart rate. The significance level of the results was very high indicating the positive effect of having a pet on dementia patients through creation of a sense of relaxation and a feeling of wellbeing. The second hypothesis was meant to test whether the presence of a pet in the experimental ward would reduce the noise level. The statistical test used was still paired t-test. 0.0031 was the p-value obtained thus leading to rejection of the null hypothesis that the presence of a pet led to no change in the noise level. The size of the p-value is indicative of highly significant results and in support of the alternative hypothesis that the presence of a pet would reduce the noise level. The third hypothesis was meant to test whether the visit of the pet in the appropriate control ward would lead to the noise level being significantly reduced in the control ward. The statistical test used was the unpaired t-test. 0.0012 was the p-value obtained hence leading to a rejection of the null hypothesis. This p-value is indicative of highly significant results and a confirmation of the hypothesis that there is a reduction in the noise level between the experimental and control ward readings. The fourth hypothesis was meant to test whether at the beginning of the study the two groups were evenly matched in accordance in accordance with the BCABS scale. 0.1806 was the p-value obtained hence supporting the null hypothesis that according to the BCABS scale there is no difference between the two groups. The size of the p-value suggested the results gathered were not significant. The final hypothesis was meant to test whether any difference existed between the LPRS scale between the two groups after completion of the study. The statistical test used was the unpaired t-test. 0.6869 was the p-value obtained which is very insignificant. This implies absence of change to the LPRS scale between the two groups. ABSTRACT The focus of this study was to aid in making decisions regarding a return to work programme for police officers. The two purposes of the study were to provide an accurate assessment of the ability of the patient to function as well as to have a programme designed that would help meet the patients’ job and injury needs. The collection of data involved taking measurements of lifting capacity and grip strength prior to and after the patients’ therapy. Results of three specific statistical tests are included in this report. From the results, it is clear that lifting capacity and grip strength is increased by the return to work programme. On the other hand, no correlation exists between age, sessions attended and time since injury. INTRODUCTION The programme had a participation of nineteen clients, all of whom ranged from 29 and 46 years of age. Those over the age of 38 comprised nearly 80% of the participants. The clients with an injured right hand and an injured left hand were four and three respectively. One and twenty sessions was the range within which the attendance varied although eight or less lessons were attended by nearly ¾ of the clients. There was a great variation in the time since the injury although the clients who sustained the injury a year or more before the start of the pogramme were 68% of the total. The longest period sustained was 4 ½ years. RESULTS The first hypothesis was meant to test the existence of an improvement in lifting capacity. Since the study’s concern was on the increase in lifting capacity and considering that the measurements were taken from the same clients, a dependent, one-tailed test was used. 2.7 and 0.0205 were the p-value and t-value used respectively hence leading to a rejection of the null hypothesis of no change in lifting capacity. The results were significant hence indicating an increase in the lifting capacity. The second hypothesis was meant to test the existence of an improvement in the grip strength of the injured hand. Since the interest of the study was in an increase in the grip strength of the injured hand and that the measurements were taken from the same clients, a dependent, one-tailed t-test was applied. 3.55 and 0.006 were the t and p-values respectively hence leading to a rejection of the null hypothesis of no change in grip strength. There was a clear indication of an increase in the strength of the injured hand since the results were very highly significant. The existence of correlation between age, sessions attended and time since injury was the third statistic tested. The extent of the existence of any linear relationship between these three areas was determined using the correlation coefficient. The correlation between attendance and age, attendance and time since injury as well as age and time since injury were r=0.281, r=0.063 and r=0.127 respectively. This implies that there was no linear correlation between attendance, age and time since injury. DISCUSSION From the results, it is clear that over the course of the therapy programme there was an improvement in the areas of lifting capacity and grip strength and that there is no correlation between age, attendance and time since injury. A combination of job simulation, physical therapy and psychosocial therapy could be the course of the improvement in the areas lifting capacity and grip strength. Since the exercises originated from work sites which include Dog Handling and Traffic Control Units, job stimulation would most probably provide specific practice. Using exercises relevant to the job may make physical therapy increase strength and mobility. Probably, psychosocial therapy would aid the client in overcoming problems such as having to live with an injury, attempt to create a balance between work, therapy, leisure, self-care along with many others. Improved grip strength and lifting capacity could have also been caused by many internal factors. According to Christiansen and Baum (1997) a client’s feeling of self-worth is improved by him having the ability to choose whether or not to be included in the program since this gives him a position of power over his situation. The implication here is that the clients who chose to participate were already internally motivated. Since the exercises are designed to be job- specific there is a likelihood that the client would be more motivated to do well since they can see the relevance of the exercise in relation to returning to work. The following reasons could have resulted to the zero correlation between age, time since injury and number of sessions attended. First, age and time since injury are not related in any way since injuries can occur to any staff of the police force at any age. Second, sessions attended are affected by other factors like self interests and do not conform to age nor time since injury. The readings could have been affected few other factors. The size of the sample was small and the number of people with injured hands who were to test grip strength were only seven. This means that the test would be biased. The amount of time used up in each session was not recorded in any way. This makes it difficult to determine the exact time spent in each treatment. The activities of the participants out of therapy like additional exercises at home could also have affected the outcome. The possibility of variability in recording and scoring rules could also have affected the outcome. The efficiency and accuracy of the hypothesis could be improved by increasing the sample size. A controlling group could also be introduced to monitor changes in lifting capability and hand strength. Simpler data could also be collected like gender and injury level to the statistic. This would enhance division of data for measuring correlations more accurately. The researchers could employ more evaluation measures like pincer strength to get an accurate measure of the effectiveness of the programme. There is a high chance that there is more room for further research into the area perhaps into whether the therapy programme will work incorporate other occupations and if it can be applied to other injuries such as leg injuries. Read More