Ted Brown

Monash University (Australia) · Department of Occupational Therapy

Introduction Paediatric occupational therapists assess and provide intervention for children presenting with sensory processing challenges that impact their daily occupational performance. Interoception, the ability to sense internal body signals, is an emerging practice area, yet it remains unclear how and why paediatric clinicians are applying in...

Introduction Interoception is relatively new within pediatric occupational therapy practice. Interoception allows us to feel and interpret internal body sensations and is related to our ability to regulate emotions and behavior. It is associated with other functions including sensory processing, self-regulation and executive functioning, making it...

Introduction Occupational therapists use standardised scales and measures to assess an individual's sensory processing factors. To date, few studies have investigated the correlations between the Adolescent/Adult Sensory Profile (A/ASP) and the Sensory Processing Measure 2–Adult Form (SPM‐2‐Adult). The aim of the project is to investigate the assoc...

Introduction The Sensory Processing Measure 2 (SPM2) and the Sensory Profile 2 (SP2) are two sensory processing scales often used by occupational therapists. The SPM2 and SP2 both claim to assess aspects of children's sensory processing. This cross‐sectional study examined the convergent validity of the SPM2‐Home Form (SPM2‐HF) and Child SP2 for sc...

Knowledge of evidence-based-education principles is essential for occupational therapy academics and fieldwork supervisors to ensure the teaching and learning methods and strategies being used are informed, targeted, cost effective, contemporary, and worthwhile. This paper defines evidence-based-education is and how it can be applied in the context...

This paper aims to provide an overview and critique of the newly updated Sensory Processing Measure - second edition (SPM-2) to assist clinicians in understanding its strengths and limitations and in selecting an appropriate sensory processing scale that best meets their clients' needs. Using four established research methodological quality critiqu...

Background: When assessing motor skills, occupational therapists are encouraged to seek the perspectives of children and their parents to promote the delivery of client-centered care. Aim: To investigate whether 9-12-year-old children's views and their parents' proxy views of the children's motor skill competence and their performance on a stand...

Introduction Scar massage is a commonly used treatment in hand therapy. The current empirical evidence that supports it is disparate and of variable quality, with no established effective dosage and method proposed. This study aimed to identify the current practice among Australian hand therapists using massage as an intervention for scarring follo...

The provision of quality healthcare relies on scales and measures with robust evidence of their psychometric properties. Using measurement instruments with poor reliability, validity, or feasibility, or those that are not appropriate for the target diagnostic group or construct/dimension under consideration, may be unfavorable for patients, unprodu...

Introduction In recent years, screen-based activities have become increasingly popular amongst children and adolescents. Several studies have found increased screen time to be associated with sleep disturbances, poorer academic performance and reduced physical activity. However, not much is known about children’s activity preferences and participat...

Child focus is a central construct within Bowen family systems theory (Bowen theory). A clinical implication is that mental health treatment focusing on a child may unwittingly reinforce the operation of child‐focused processes, which undermine rather than enhance child well‐being. The concept of child focus in Bowen theory presents significant imp...

Children’s participation in daily occupations can be influenced by a range of factors. One such factor is interoceptive awareness which allows a person to understand their internal body signals and can support emotional and self-regulation. The current literature surrounding interoceptive awareness and children’s participation is lacking. To explor...

Aim: Older adults represent a growing demographic in Australia who are at an increased risk of isolation, loneliness, and experiencing poorer overall health. Thus, the need for understanding factors that influence older adults’ wellbeing is important. Emergent research into adult playfulness has shown positive associations with indicators of wellbe...

Introduction Independently, interoceptive awareness and executive functioning play major roles in children’s abilities to engage in their daily occupations. This study investigated the potential relationship between neurotypical school-age children’s interoceptive awareness and executive functioning. Method A convenience sample of 30 children (8–1...

Introduction: Occupational therapists often use play-based approaches to facilitate children's occupational development and promote participation, for example, play-based occupational therapy, play therapy and playwork. However, where does play occupation fit, within these adult-guided play-based approaches in occupational therapy? Purpose: To exam...

Background The rapid switch to online learning in response to the Covid-19 pandemic affected occupational therapy students’ education delivery. It is, therefore, important to investigate these impacts. Aims/objectives This study investigated the potential predictors of academic performance in undergraduate occupational therapy students after movin...

Consequences of brachial plexus injuries (BPI) would likely impact participation, but outcomes are not well understood. This exploratory study aimed to report the participation in productive, leisure and social roles for individuals following BPI. Fourteen male participants were diagnosed with a traumatic, BPI. Descriptive data reported included de...

Playfulness and quality of life (QoL) appear to be related constructs; however, no studies have explored the potential association between them to date. Playfulness and QoL are important practice-related concepts for education and therapy professionals who work with children and their families. This study examined the potential links between childr...

Purpose: To investigate differences between domestic and international occupational therapy students in their perceptions and experiences of online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Cross-sectional study of 151 occupational therapy students enrolled in the 4-year Bachelor of Occupational Therapy (Honours) courses at the University...

Introduction This study investigated the impact of different types of screen time on quality of life and participation in school-aged children. Method Twenty-nine typically developing children (mean age: 9.34 [Formula: see text] 1.37, range: 8–14 years) and 20 of their parents completed the Children Screen Time Use Report, the KIDSCREEN-52 and the...

This Australian study compared perspectives of family quality of life (FQOL) of parents of preschool children attending early childhood intervention services (ECIS) with parents of school‐aged children with disability. It examined the relationships between disability‐related services, parent occupations, and FQOL. Two mixed‐methods studies with 122...

Social work students are expected to learn about and demonstrate several professional competencies during their academic and fieldwork studies. This study explored the associations between professionalism, resilience, and reflective thinking in a sample of 212 students enrolled in a Master of Social Work program. The sample was predominantly female...

Students more than ever are completing their university studies online. At the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, most higher education providers were required to move to exclusively deliver online curriculum. It is therefore imperative that educators have access to psychometrically sound measures of students’ online learning experiences. The reliabil...

Filial therapy is a play therapy intervention where significant individuals who are not clinicians facilitate therapeutic play sessions with children. In School-Based Filial Therapy (SBFT), the direct treatment role is performed by specially trained education professionals. Concerns about fidelity in filial therapy have been raised historically; ho...

With the internationalisation of higher education, students from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds represent a significant proportion of the university student body in Australia. Research literature indicates that the unique cultural and linguistic challenges experienced by these students may adversely impact their academic p...

The novel coronavirus (Covid-19) was first detected in Australia on 25 January 2020. It quickly spread across the country and impacted the lives of Australians in many anticipated and unexpected ways, including our daily engagement in occupations, occupational repertoires, and routines. Depending on whether you lived in a region of Australia like V...

Introduction: In many countries, the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in sudden changes to the delivery of health professions education in response to local and national lockdowns. Within occupational therapy, university education programs traditionally delivered in face-to-face classroom, and clinical settings, the transition to online learning present...

Background Scar massage is a widely used treatment modality in hand therapy. This intervention is thoroughly discussed in the literature relating to burns rehabilitation, however, the evidence for its use in treating linear scars following surgery is limited. Purpose of study To collate the empirical literature on scar massage for the treatment of...

The visuoperceptual measure for videofluoroscopic swallow studies (VMV) is a new measure for analysing the recordings from videofluoroscopic swallow studies (VFSS). This study evaluated the reliability and validity of the pilot version of the VMV using classical test theory (CTT) analysis, informed by the consensus-based standards for the selection...

BACKGROUND Improving funding models and policies that facilitate greater interprofessional collaboration and integration at the primary and allied health level could improve the ongoing quality, safety, and future sustainability of the wider healthcare system by reducing inefficiencies and inequalities. Defining these key healthcare funding-related...

Background: Improving funding models and implementing policies that facilitate greater interprofessional collaboration and integration at the primary and allied health level could improve the ongoing quality and safety and future sustainability of the wider health care system by reducing inefficiencies and inequalities. Defining these key health c...

Limited research currently exists that examines typically-developing children’s sensory processing and how this effects their leisure activity participation and preferences. To investigate the association between sensory processing and the self-reported leisure activity participation and preferences in children aged seven to 12 years. 24 children (...

Handwriting is an important daily occupation for children. When assessing children’s handwriting, it is recommended that clinicians use objective handwriting performance tests as well as solicit children’s and parents’ perspectives to promote client-centered practice. However, it remains unknown to what extent objective handwriting performance test...

Background: Emotional-behavioural problems in children present a barrier to engagement and participation in school occupations. Applying practice theory is an essential process to explore the impact of clinical problems and to orient clinical thinking to the domain of occupation. Purpose: Occupational therapy practice theory and frameworks are appl...

Background Fieldwork is a core element of health professional and education student training that is often a professional registration and practice requirement. There are many personal, social, and professional factors that impact on students’ fieldwork performance. The impact of professionalism, resilience, and reflective thinking on fieldwork per...

A bibliometric analysis was performed to examine the occupational therapy peer-reviewed literature addressing interventions for children and adolescents with mental health disorders (1980–2019). The search strategy yielded 82 articles that have not produced significant support for the profession’s role in this practice area, have not been well-cite...

Young carers support family members affected by disability or a health condition. The Young Carer Bursary Program aims to support young carers' education. This paper analysed data from consenting bursary applicants (2017–2019) to investigate relationships between wellbeing, educational attendance, home study and other factors. Descriptive statistic...

Purpose To investigate if first-year occupational therapy students who have had no on-campus, face-to-face learning experiences differed from second-, third- and fourth-year students in their perceptions and experiences of online learning during the Covid-19 pandemic. Methods One hundred and fifty-one occupational therapy undergraduate students (8...

The relationship between entry-level, undergraduate occupational therapy students’ fieldwork performance and measures of professionalism, reflective thinking and resilience was examined. A group of 135 undergraduates (86% female) completed a self-report questionnaire containing the standardized instruments measuring professionalism, resilience and...

Students’ approaches to studying are viewed as essential for their learning outcomes. However, associations between study approaches and academic outcomes among occupational therapy students are rarely studied, as are cross-cultural comparisons. This study assessed associations between the deep, strategic and surface approaches to studying and occu...

Introduction The rapid shift to digital platforms during the COVID-19 pandemic enabled occupational therapy practice education to continue while creating unique learning opportunities for students in an environment of high demand for practice education providers. How occupational therapy practice educators experienced fieldwork supervision during t...

Background The quality of the academic workforce is influenced by multi-level interactionist factors yet there is limited research into these influencing factors. Aim To investigate relationships between individual characteristics of Australian occupational therapy academics and work-related variables. Method An exploratory cross-sectional online...

Introduction: The Videofluoroscopic Swallow Study (VFSS) is a commonly used dysphagia assessment that is routinely analysed visuoperceptually. However, no consensus exists regarding which visuoperceptual measures should be used to analyse VFSSs. Current visuoperceptual measures for VFSSs are limited by poor quality and incomplete or indeterminate...

Introduction A survey of International Federation of Societies for Hand Therapy (IFSHT) member countries identified relative motion extension as the preferred approach to management of zones V-VI extensor tendon repairs. The aims of this survey were to identify and compare hand therapy practice patterns in Malaysia (a non-IFSHT member country) with...

The Test of Visual Perceptual Skills – Fourth Edition (TVPS-4) is a recently revised assessment of motor-free perceptual abilities, that was standardized in the United States. The TVPS-4 is commonly used by pediatric occupational therapists, health professionals and educators, therefore it is important that its psychometric properties and use in cr...

This study evaluates the efficacy of a school-based social cognitive intervention for children with autism. Seventy-four children and adolescents were taught visually scaffolded, theory of mind-based social skills program. Using a mixed-methods approach, children's social competence was assessed at pre-test and post-test. Compared to a waitlist con...

A key feature of autism spectrum disorder is a dysfunction in social participation. This study aimed to explore the parents’ perceptions and experiences of social cognitive training for their child with autism in the Hong Kong context. Using a qualitative narrative approach, twenty-three parent participants were interviewed using purposive sampling...

Background Academic life requiring students to meet academic and professional practice expectations can be stressful. Effective emotional and social competence can assist students in managing feelings, stressful situations and fostering relationships with educators, peers, and clients. Hence this is a helpful professional competence for health stud...

Background The Sensory Profile-2 (SP-2) is the recently revised set of scales that provide information about a child’s responses to different types of sensory stimuli. Aim To examine the methodological quality and psychometric properties of the SP-2 using the Consensus-based Standards for the Selection of Health Measurement Instruments (COSMIN) an...

Introduction Children encounter several types of sensory input from their daily living environments and take in and process this information using their sensory systems. Few studies have considered the impact of children’s sensory preferences on their activity participation. This study investigated the relationship between children’s sensory proces...

Background: Cognitive training (CT) for individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) may not be optimal for enhancing cognitive functioning. Coupling CT with transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) may maximize the strength of transmission across synaptic circuits in pathways that are stimulated by CT. The synergistic effects arising fr...

Purpose: Fathers in families raising children with disabilities are under-researched. Fathers' perspectives can be better accommodated in childhood disability services that operate on a family-centred paradigm if their perspectives are understood. This study aimed to investigate the perspectives of fathers on caring and family life, work, and heal...

Attitudes are an enduring set of beliefs, perceptions, and ideas. Students enrolled in health professional courses may have strong beliefs and opinions on certain topics related to professional education and their clinical practice. These attitudes may become more apparent while health professional students are completing clinical placements. This...

Background: Professionalism is a key attribute that occupational therapy students must establish throughout their education. Resilience and reflective thinking are two skills that may underpin students' professionalism. Objective: To investigate whether resilience and reflective thinking are predictive of undergraduate occupational therapy stude...

Abstract Objective: Practitioners work with children presenting with sensory processing difficulties. There is limited evidence about the relationship between children’s sensory processing and their executive functioning. This study investigated the relationship between children’s sensory processing and executive functioning. Methods: Forty paren...

Sensory processing and executive functioning have been studied extensively as individual concepts in primary school children, yet little literature exists that has examined the relationship between these two factors. This study investigated the association between sensory processing and executive functioning in school-aged children. Parents of 40 t...

Purpose The developmental, individual-difference and relationship (DIR)/Floortime ® approach is a commonly used parent-implemented intervention with children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Currently, no evidence is available about the intervention’s implementation and utility in Malaysia. The aim of this paper is to investigate the applicabil...

Background: Academic integrity is viewed as honest and responsible scholarship and the moral code of academia. Reported incidences of academic dishonesty among health professional students are widespread and may be an indicator of future unprofessional behaviour in the workplace. Aim: This study investigated the potential predictors of academic int...

Background Productive approaches to studying (deep and strategic learning) are associated with a variety of favourable academic outcomes, and may be of particular importance for students in multifaceted and complex disciplines such as occupational therapy. Aim To explore associations between student characteristics and their dominant approaches to...

This study evaluates the efficacy of a school-based social cognitive intervention for children with autism. Seventy-four children and adolescents were taught visually scaffolded, theory of mind-based social skills program. Using a mixed-methods approach, children’s social competence was assessed at pre-test and post-test. Compared to a waitlist con...

Introduction Given the high incidence of hand and wrist injuries, they are exceptionally costly to the economy. This prospective, longitudinal study aimed to establish methods for capturing the burden of acute hand and wrist injury from an individual and societal perspective. Methods A prospective longitudinal design with baseline measures of inju...

School-based Filial Therapy (SBFT), a mental health intervention for primary school children living and remote locations. The SBFT pilot was implemented in three rural primary schools in remote and regional New South Wales, Australia, using a pretest-posttest control group design to investigate the impact of 10-sessions of Filial Therapy with a par...

Date Presented 03/26/20 The Australian OT academic workforce has been impacted by an increased number of education programs and student enrollment. Only half have a PhD or professional doctorate, and there is only a small number in academic leadership. Most academics were motivated to become academics to teach students. Job satisfaction was influen...

Background Effective communication and empathy are fundamental to nurse-patient relationships and good nursing practice. Although the importance of listening is widely accepted in the nursing practice, little research exists regarding the empathic and listening styles of undergraduate nursing students. Purpose This study investigated empathic and...

Playfulness is well researched in children; however, much less is known about its impact on the well-being of adults. To investigate the relationship between playfulness and well-being in Australian adults. Participants ( N = 175) completed the Other-directed, Lighthearted, Intellectual, and Whimsical (OLIW) scale for playfulness and the Positive E...