The Journal of Korean Society of Community-Based Occupational Therapy Vol.14 No.1 pp.22-34
Awareness and Role of Occupational Therapists in Case Management in the Field of Community Based Occupational Therapy : A Survey Study
Key Words : Awareness,Case Management,Community,Occupational Therapist,Role
Abstract
Objective : This study aims to confirm the awareness and role of case management among community occupational therapists and establish basic data on case management in the field of community occupational therapy. Methods : Questionnaires on case management were produced based on domestic and international literature. An online questionnaires were distributed to 145 occupational therapists working at community organizations. Among the returned questionnaires, a total of 133 questionnaires were used for data analysis, excluding 12 with unclear information. Descriptive statistics and multiple response analysis were used for data analysis. Results : Although there was general awareness of case management and the need for it, expertise in case management was found to be low. Most of the participants had experience(83.5%) in case management , and experts in charge of case management included occupational therapist(31.7%). The strength of occupational therapists as case managers was their high awareness of direct services such as assessment(28.1%) and direct intervention(23.3%). The weaknesses of occupational therapists as case managers were indirect services such as administrative duties(21.0%) and service linkage(19.6%). Most participants responded that they had no training experience on case management(71.4%), and the need for curriculum development(83.5%) and continuing education(78.9%) was very high. As a result of the importance of the occupational therapist's role, the most important roles were ADL training(4.74 points) in the service execution role. In the assessment role, the important results were shown in the order of analysis and evaluation of occupational performance(4.64 points) and establishing an assessment and intervention plan(4.63 points). Conclusion : In order for community occupational therapists to demonstrate their capabilities as case management experts, systematic support and infrastructure construction are necessary, and continuous research related to this needs to be conducted.