Occupational therapists' perceptions of psychosocial strategies for clients with Parkinson's disease.

Psychological strategies are a promising adjunct to pharmacological treatment for symptoms, including depression and anxiety associated with Parkinson's disease. In this study, we investigated perceptions and reported behaviors of occupational therapists regarding the use of psychosocial strategies during their practice with clients with Parkinson's disease. The results of a cross-sectional online survey (n = 115 occupational therapists) demonstrated that the majority of participants (83%) reported using psychosocial strategies with their clients living with Parkinson's disease, with goal setting the most frequent. Almost all occupational therapists (99.1%) reported that it was moderately to extremely important to have knowledge about psychosocial strategies for practice with clients living with Parkinson's disease, and 96.5% rated it important to be able to offer these strategies in practice with their clients living with Parkinson's disease. The majority (91.3%) felt incorporating psychosocial strategies into their practice was moderately to extremely beneficial, and 93.9% reported that psychosocial strategies have a moderate-to-extremely positive effect on Parkinson's disease management outcomes. These findings have important implications for the education and training of occupational therapists working with clients living with Parkinson's disease to help ensure the best possible outcomes for people with Parkinson's disease.