Article

This study aimed to gain understanding of participation in everyday
occupations through life stories of persons aging with a traumatic spinal cord
injury (SCI). METHOD: A narrative method was used for data collection and a
paradigmatic analysis was used to analyze data. RESULTS:
The analysis resulted in
three themes that illustrate how the participants acted to participate in
everyday occupations, how that changed over time, and some concerns about their
future. The first theme illustrates how participants following SCI acted to
become agents of their lives and participate in everyday occupations. The second
theme illustrates how participants had to prioritize participation in meaningful
occupations due to personal and environmental factors. The third theme shows how
they had to try new strategies to continue participation in occupations, due to
secondary health complications related to aging. CONCLUSIONS: This study captures
how persons aging with tetraplegia acted to participate in everyday occupations
from soon after the injury until several decades later. In addition, their
ability to act and participate changed over time. Our findings provide knowledge
that can guide clinicians in their work within this complex area of
rehabilitation. Besides, it can also guide the work with policy recommendations
for healthcare and social service systems. IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATION: Aging
with a SCI is a complex daily struggle in order to be able to continue acting and
participating in everyday occupations, and thereby this gives implications for a
lifelong support. This study provides knowledge that can guide clinicians in
their work within this complex area of rehabilitation. Knowledge from this study
can guide the work with policy recommendations for healthcare and social service
systems.

Langue : ANGLAIS