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CROSS-CULTURAL VALIDATION AND ADAPTATION OF THE FLEMISH VERSION OF THE PARTICIPATION AND ENVIRONMENT MEASURE OF CHILDREN AND YOUTH (PEM-CY). Marieke Coussens, Ms C OT, PhD candidate12 Niki Bulckmans, MsC OT3 Dominique VandeVelde12, MsC OT, PhD, Prof. 1Faculty of Medicine, Department of Physical therapy and motor rehabilitation, Ghent University, Belgium. 2 Department of Occupational Therapy, Artevelde University College Ghent, Belgium. 3 Department of Occupational Therapy, Artesis Plantijn University College, Belgium. marieke.coussens@ugent.be niki.bulckmans@ap.be dominique.vandevelde@ugent.be Introduction: Participation refers to a child’s involvement in important everyday activities. The PEM-CY examines participation frequency, extent of involvement and desire for change in sets of activities typical for the home, school or community. It also includes an assessment of the effect of environment on children’s participation. Objectives: The aim of this study was 1) to translate, culturally adapt and investigate the psychometric properties of the Flemish version of the PEM-CY and 2) to draw a profile of the level of participation among children with Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) in Belgium (Flanders). Methods: Convenience sampling method was used to survey caregivers of children. Parents completed an online demographic questionnaire and web-based Flemish PEM-CY version. Results: Participants were 149 caregivers of children between 5 to 13 years of age (mean= 8 y, 42.1 % girls). 89,5% respondents were mothers. 53.9 % of the children received a diagnosis. Functional skills such as attention (63,4%), communication (53,7%), managing emotions (48,8%), controlling behaviors (41,5%) and reacting to sensations (36,6%) are more strongly linked to participation outcomes according to caregivers perceptions. Internal consistency is good to strong for the participation scales and environment scale (α ranges 0,529 - 0,860). For the domain school (frequency) internal consistency is weak (α = 0,278). Test-retest reliability is moderate at scale level (ICC 0,37-0,70), but at item level it is highly variable. Construct validity of the PEM-CY is supported as it can detect significant differences between children with and without a diagnose, but not for all the variables. It can also determine differences regarding household income and gender. Significant negative correlations (domain home r = -0,477, domain school r = - 0,538 and domain community r = -0,452) between desire for change and supportiveness of the environment support the Conclusion: Although initially designed for research use, information from the PEM-CY may be useful in clinical practice to identity baseline concerns and to set intervention priorities for clients.

A COMPREHENSIVE SYSTEMATIC SCOPING REVIEW OF THE NEEDS AND BARRIERS THAT PARENTS FACE WHEN ENABLING THEIR YOUNG CHILD’S PARTICIPATION Marieke Coussens, Ms C OT, PhD candidate12 Evy Driessenss, MsC OT1 Dominique VandeVelde12, MsC OT, PhD, Prof. 1Faculty of Medicine, Department of Physical therapy and motor rehabilitation, Ghent University, Belgium. 2 Department of Occupational Therapy, Artevelde University College Ghent, Belgium. marieke.coussens@ugent.be evy.driessens@ugent.be dominique.vandevelde@ugent.be Introduction: During the early years of a child’s life, participation in supportive environments optimizes child and family outcomes. Greater participation helps families sustain daily routines and facilitates skill acquisition. Young children with developmental disabilities are at risk for experiencing problems in participation as compared to similar-aged peers without disabilities. The interplay between environment and participation has been identified as one of the most important factors influencing successful participation for children with disabilities. Objective: The purpose was to identify/analyze what information is available from the literature about the wishes and needs of parents of young children (< 6 years) with (characteristics of) Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and/or Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) while enabling their child’s participation. Method Scoping review with extensive literature search between 2001-2017 and a thematic analysis based on the International Classification of Functioning, Child Youth was conducted. Results Eleven (out of 849) relevant articles revealed five major themes. Needs and wishes of the parents trying to enable their child’s participation were mainly situated in the domains 'services, systems and policies', attitudes and 'general tasks and demands'. Conclusions: This study indicates that health care workers should focus on communication with parents, providing information to parents and creating an available contact point to enable their child’s participation. They also identified needing more support on dealing with behavioral problems. Implications Therapists working in early intervention can use the findings from this review to consider supports and barriers within interventions to enhance participation in meaningful life situations.

Godkänd; 2016; 20160629 (andbra)

Playing 2gether with a PLAY Suitcase”: an approach to promote participation and play for infants who are at risk for developmental delays. Marieke Coussens1,2, 1School of Occupational Therapy, Artevelde University College Ghent, Belgium. Marieke.coussens@arteveldehs.be 2Department of Physical therapy and motor rehabilitation, University of Ghent, Belgium. M.coussens@ugent.be, Background: Participation is essential for children’s development. Limitations in playing may endanger participation skills and enhance the risk of learning problems because play is viewed as central to learning in the early years. Infants at risk for a developmental delay may play less leading to limitation in their participation. Interventions enhancing ‘playfulness’ seem necessary. However, play is an extremely difficult phenomenon to define and has presented significant challenges to early childhood educators. Occupational therapists are challenged to provide support to early childhood educators in order to help infants play and participate to the fullest of their potential. Method: Educational design research was used to ensure the practical relevance of our study. The “Playing 2gether with a PLAY suitcase”-intervention was developed by integrating state-of-the-art knowledge from prior research into the design process and by fine tuning educational innovations based on piloting in the field. The Leuven Involvement Scale, Functional Emotional Assessment Scale and Sensory Profile were used to coach early childhood educators to observe an infant’s unique sensory processing patterns and social emotional functioning from a position of strengths. This lead to the development of an individually tailored PLAY suitcase an approach meeting the infant’s needs. Results: “Playing 2gether with a PLAY Suitcase” leads to more involvement and higher levels of well-being and subsequent independent play in infants. Application to practice: Using “Playing 2gether with a PLAY suitcase” helps early childhood educators to tailor their support better.