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Importance: The Mini-Clinical Evaluation Exercise (Mini-CEX) is highly recommended for assessing interns' performance. Objective: To develop a pediatric occupational therapy–specific Mini-CEX and examine its psychometrics. Design: Stage 1 had a retrospective design; Stage 2 had a prospective design. Setting: Pediatric occupational therapy unit in a hospital in Taiwan. Participants: Thirty-four occupational therapy interns were evaluated with the Mini-CEX (physician version), and 57 were evaluated with the occupational therapy–specific Mini-CEX. Outcomes and Measures: The occupational therapy–specific Mini-CEX was developed with seven items on a 9-point scale categorized into three levels (unsatisfactory, satisfactory, highly satisfactory). Results: In Stage 1, the frequency of Mini-CEX (physician version) items receiving a rating of not applicable ranged from 1.9% to 88.1%. In Stage 2, the frequency of occupational therapy–specific Mini-CEX items receiving a rating of not applicable ranged from 3.5% to 31.6%. With the theme of evaluation taken into consideration, the frequency of not-applicable ratings was 0% to 8.8%. For the occupational therapy–specific Mini-CEX, content validity (item-level content validity index = 1, scale-level content validity index = 1) and internal consistency (Cronbach's α =.93) were excellent. The interns' scores on the second evaluation were significantly higher than those on their first evaluation, indicating good discriminant validity. Conclusions and Relevance: The occupational therapy–specific Mini-CEX appears to be reliable and valid, and it is appropriate for evaluating interns' skills and attitudes in pediatric occupational therapy practice. What This Article Adds: The results support the development of the occupational therapy–specific Mini-CEX and its application in pediatric internship training. The results of this study support the development of the occupational therapy–specific Mini-CEX and its application in evaluating interns' skills and attitudes in pediatric occupational therapy practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Importance: Early identification of young children at risk of developmental coordination disorder (DCD) can support early intervention and prevent secondary sequelae. Objective: To examine the psychometric properties of a translated and cross-culturally adapted version of the Little Developmental Coordination Disorder Questionnaire–Taiwan (LDCDQ–TW). Design: Prospective study. Setting: Kindergartens and preschools in north, central, and south Taiwan. Participants: In Phase 1 the participants were 1,124 parents of typically developing children ages 36–71 mo. Children with confirmed developmental diagnoses were excluded. Participants in Phase 3 were 162 children who had been recruited in Phase 2. Outcomes and Measures: The LDCDQ–TW, a 15-item parent questionnaire for identifying children at risk for DCD, and the Movement Assessment Battery for Children (2nd ed.; MABC–2), were administered. Results: The findings revealed excellent test–retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC] =.97) and poor interrater reliability (ICC =.47). On the basis of MABC–2 scores, the non-DCD group (≥15th percentile) scored significantly higher than the DCD and suspect-DCD groups on the LDCDQ–TW, but the latter two groups did not differ from one another. Using the 15th percentile as a cutoff for both the MABC–2 and the LDCDQ–TW, sensitivity was.96 and specificity was.68. Conclusions and Relevance: Although standardized performance-based assessments are required to confirm a diagnosis of DCD (typically after age 5 yr), the LDCDQ–TW demonstrated sound reliability and validity and can support the early identification of young children at risk of DCD in Taiwan. What This Article Adds: The LDCDQ–TW can facilitate early intervention for DCD and prevent secondary sequelae, improving outcomes for children with DCD. The LDCDQ–TW demonstrated sound reliability and validity and can support the early identification of young children at risk of developmental coordination disorder in Taiwan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Importance: The Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) is a highly valued measure of students' clinical competencies in medical education. However, few studies have reported on the administration of the OSCE in pediatric occupational therapy education. Objective: To describe the development of a pediatric occupational therapy OSCE station to evaluate students' use of a standardized assessment and examine its standard setting, failure rates, and psychometric properties. Design: Prospective, cross-sectional, observational study design. Setting: Three OSCE stations in a university clinical skills center. Participants: Five experienced occupational therapists, 60 examinees, 44 child standardized patients, 44 chaperones, and 15 examiners. Measures: The sum of the rating scale and the global performance scores were used. The rating scale measured the examinee's clinical competences in administering a standardized assessment. The 5-point global performance score was used to evaluate the examinee's whole performance. Results: The OCSE station's expert validity was acceptable (item-level content validity index [CVI] = 0.8–1.0; scale-level CVI = 0.98). Passing scores according to the Angoff method (passing score = 14) and the contrasting-groups M–SD method (passing score = 13) were similar. Failure rates were high (61.7%–73.3%). Internal consistency was acceptable (Cronbach's α =.78). No significant examiner effect was found (p =.554), and interexaminer reliability was acceptable (item score = 0.58–1.00; sum of the rating scale score = 0.97; global performance score = 0.79). Conclusions and Relevance: The OSCE station for using a standardized assessment is a reliable and valid measure of students' interpersonal communication skills and assessment skills. What This Article Adds: The OSCE for education in pediatric occupational therapy is both effective and rigorous. The OSCE station for using a standardized assessment is a reliable and valid measure for evaluating students' interpersonal communication skills and assessment skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE. We examined problem behavior in preschool- and school-age children with autism spectrum disorder and assessed whether sensory processing dysfunction (SPD) and parenting stress were differentially associated with problem behaviors in these groups of children. METHOD. Participants were 101 preschool- and 61 school-age children. An independent t test was used to examine group differences in problem behaviors. Pearson correlation analysis and multiple linear regression were conducted to identify associations among SPD, parenting stress, and problem behaviors. RESULTS. Preschool children had more social withdrawal than school-age children. Moderately negative correlations were found between SPD and problem behaviors among preschool children. Parenting stress was a factor associated with problem behaviors in both groups, whereas SPD was a factor specific to preschoolers. CONCLUSION. Understanding unique problem behaviors and the significant role of SPD and parenting stress in problem behaviors could help occupational therapy clinicians plan interventions accordingly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]