Project R-15044

Enhancing person centered upper limb rehabilitation through an occupational based perspective: Untangling the interplay of motivation and factors of the person, the environment and the occupation in spinal cord injury. (Research)

A cervical spinal cord injury (C-SCI) can severely restrict daily activities through impaired motor and sensory function in the arms and hands and thereby impacting quality of life and participation. Motor training to improve arm hand function is a cornerstone in rehabilitation. The current project focuses on motor training towards daily functioning or occupational performance (OP) from occupational therapy perspective. OP results from the intersection of the Person (P), the Environment (E), and the Occupation (O) within the PEO model. Motivation proves to be a crucial factor in OP and motor training for enhancing arm hand functioning in patients with C-SCI, but its precise impact remains unclear. An understanding of factors influencing motivation will empower rehabilitation professionals to better address patient disengagement within rehabilitation. This project aims to investigate the interplay between motivation and elements of the PEO model across various stages of rehabilitation for pwC-SCI, in order to work towards personalized rehabilitation interventions and to gain a thorough understanding of the intention behavior gap within this population. Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) will be utilized to uncover the elements influencing patient motivation and to evaluate motivation over time. Furthermore a proof of concept will be examined in which EMA is used as a guiding tool for therapists to enable personalized upper limb intervention.

01 October 2024 - 30 September 2028