Occupational therapy service use among people aging with multiple sclerosis.
OBJECTIVE
We examined the use of occupational therapy services in a sample of people aging with multiple sclerosis (MS).


METHODS
A total of 1,282 people with MS, ages 45 to 90, participated in telephone interviews to identify unmet health-related service needs. Occupational therapy was 1 of 22 services examined. Proportional odds models were used to examine factors associated with how recently services were used.


RESULTS
Four hundred eighty-four participants (38.2%) had used occupational therapy services at some point since their diagnosis; 211 had used these services in the year before the interview. Recent users identified occupational therapy services as important to health and well-being. Satisfaction with services was high. Greater activity limitations and living in an urban or suburban area were associated with more recent use of occupational therapy services.


CONCLUSIONS
The results raise questions about what constitutes appropriate levels of occupational therapy service use and how to ensure that these levels are achieved.
Department of Occupational Therapy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USA. marciaf@uic.edu
Marcia
M
Finlayson
Jennifer Dahl
JD
Garcia
Chi
C
Cho
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D009788:Occupational Therapy / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012737:Sex Factors