IntroductionWhile sexuality is gaining recognition as a relevant domain of occupational therapy practice, the scope of empirical research involving occupational therapy practitioners or students in relation to sexuality remains unclear. This study aimed to map the extent and focus of this research.MethodsA scoping review was conducted using four databases: MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, and PsycINFO. The search strategy included keywords related to ‘Occupational therapy’ and ‘Sexuality’. Two independent reviewers screened the references by title and abstract, and then by full text. The team conducted a bibliometric and collaborative inductive content analysis of included papers to categorise them by themes addressed.Consumer and community consultation.Consumer and community were not involvedFindingsOf the 4491 references screened, 136 studies were included. The papers addressed at least one of seven themes: (1) Influencing factors reported by occupational therapy practitioners and students regarding sexuality (41.9%); (2) Assessment or intervention implemented by occupational therapists to address sexuality (27.2%); (3) Educating occupational therapy practitioners and students regarding sexuality (13.2%); (4) Development or validation of assessment tools regarding sexuality (7.4%); (5) The role of occupational therapists regarding sexuality (5.1%); and (6) Frameworks, models, practice guides or guidelines related to sexuality (4.4%). Several studies (41.9%) addressed more than one topic.ConclusionThe occupational therapy literature on sexuality reveals a disproportionate emphasis on certain topics, while others remain underexplored. Most studies examined the challenges encountered by occupational therapy practitioners and students in incorporating sexuality into practice. Future studies should not only focus on developing and implementing evidence‐based assessments and interventions but also on advancing theoretical understanding at the intersection of sexuality, occupation, and occupational therapy practice.

No abstract is available for this article.

ImportanceMultiple sclerosis is a chronic neurological progressive disease that can lead to different impairments. It may also impact individuals' quality of life and daily living, including occupational performance and occupational balance. However, occupational balance has not been thoroughly described in this population.ObjectiveThis study aimed to assess occupational balance in a sample of adults with multiple sclerosis, in comparison with a healthy control group.DesignA descriptive case–control study was carried out. Adults with multiple sclerosis were matched by sex and age with a healthy control group.SettingThe study was conducted in a community setting.ParticipantsA total of 122 participants (61 adults with mulitple sclerosis and 61 healthy controls) were included in this study.Outcomes and MeasuresThe following aspects were assessed: occupational balance, disease‐related factors including disability and symptom severity, occupational performance, and quality of life total score and visual analogue scale.Consumer and Community InvolvementConsumer and community members were not involved in the development or implementation of research or writing of this manuscript.ResultsBoth groups had similar occupational balance total scores (p = 0.05), except for two items where the multiple sclerosis group rated lower on ‘balance between obligatory/voluntary occupations’ (p = 0.002) and ‘balance between energy‐giving/energy‐taking occupations’ (p = 0.01). A negative relationship was found between low disease severity and high occupational balance and between high health‐related quality of life, high occupational performance, and high occupational balance.Conclusions and RelevanceNo differences between groups were found in OB, but the MS group experienced more problems with some items. Adults living with multiple sclerosis for many years may adapt by altering their roles, routines, and daily priorities, which may explain why occupational balance was similar between the groups. Occupational balance is a core concept related to all the measures in this study and is thus important to address.

Handwriting is a skill required for successful classroom engagement, with mastery of prewriting patterns a key stage of its early development. Currently, there are limited tools evaluating prewriting ability. The Prewriting Assessment is one tool clinicians can use, which involves children copying eight pictures constructed from prewriting patterns. This study aimed to determine the psychometric properties of the Prewriting Assessment. A cross-sectional research design was used, involving 54 typically developing 4- to 5-year-olds enrolled in Western Australian kindergartens. Participants were assessed using the Prewriting Assessment and Developmental Test of Visual Perception (Third Edition) Visual Motor Integration subtests. To determine test-retest reliability, 21 of the 54 participants were retested 2-4weeks later. To determine intra-rater reliability, 20 samples were rescored by the same assessor, and to determine inter-rater reliability, 20 samples were rescored by a different assessor. Analysis included descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlation coefficients, Intraclass correlation coefficients, and Cronbach's alpha. Teachers and occupational therapists working with 4- to 5-year-old children expressed a need for a prewriting assessment and provided feedback on the Prewriting Assessment design. Criterion validity (concurrent) was demonstrated through moderate to strong correlations between total Prewriting Assessment scores and the Developmental Test of Visual Perception (Third Edition) visual motor integration sum of scaled scores (r(52) = 0.58), copying raw and scaled scores (r(52) = 0.61, and r(52) = 0.55). Intraclass correlation coefficients for the Prewriting Assessment total scores were strongly correlated (0.82 test re-test, 0.92 inter-rater, and 0.97 intra-rater reliability) (p < 0.001). Internal consistency between items on the Prewriting Assessment ranged between moderate and excellent (Cronbach's alpha = 0.84-0.96). The PWA has established reliability and concurrent criterion validity when used with children aged 4-5years, allowing occupational therapists and teachers to evaluate a child's prewriting ability. Further research could investigate the predictive validity of the Prewriting Assessment.

Scoping reviews are being completed by occupational therapists more frequently. Many occupational therapy scoping review search protocols only focus on white peer-reviewed literature accessible from online database searches. The original intent of scoping reviews was to also include searches of grey literature, but this source of evidence is frequently overlooked. This overview aims to discuss the advantages and challenges of grey literature and provide strategies for searching, accessing, and critically appraising it. This overview discusses the advantages and challenges of grey literature and provides strategies for searching, accessing, and critically appraising it in the context of conducting a scoping review. Searching for and sourcing grey literature can be challenging, time-consuming, costly, and labour-intensive. Determining the breadth and inclusivity of a grey literature search can also be daunting. However, there are several significant advantages to incorporating grey literature in an occupational therapy scoping review search protocol. This includes reducing the impact of positive-results publication bias, providing a balanced perspective on the available evidence, and offering more detailed information than journal literature, as grey literature reports are not restricted by publisher-enforced length limitations. No consumer or community involvement occurred during the writing of this manuscript in part due to the nature of the article topic. Any terminology used in this manuscript also does not refer to any specific societal, community, or cultural groups. Moving forwards, it is strongly recommended that occupational therapists undertaking a scoping review include both white and grey literature sources in their search protocols where appropriate. Doing so will enhance the breadth, depth, and rigour of occupational therapy scoping review outcomes.

Young adults experiencing psychosis want to work but most of them do not, even though success in employment and careers is possible. Occupational therapists are ideally placed to support young adults experiencing psychosis with employment, but evidence on contemporary occupational therapy practice in this area is lacking. This study asked occupational therapists who work with young people experiencing psychosis to share their perspectives about employment support. An interpretive description study design was used with data collected through a focus group of expert informant occupational therapists. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. There was no consumer and community involvement. Seven occupation therapists (4 to 23 years' experience) participated. All supported young adults experiencing psychosis who wanted to work. They perceived occupational therapists as using direct and indirect service provision. Direct service provision comprised person-centred occupation-focused employment support interventions to build occupational performance skills and explore and help secure potential work roles and career opportunities. Indirect service provision involved advocating inside mental health systems for work as a valid and valuable intervention goal if this is what the young person wanted; simplifying pathways in mental health and employment service systems; adopting early intervention approaches to employment support; and identifying enabling social and employment contexts. Occupational therapists perceive current practice involves integrating an occupation-focused person-centred approach to employment support within their roles, which may be interdisciplinary. They use direct and indirect service provision. Direct focused on the young person; indirect occupational therapy focuses on mental health, employment and social environments experienced by the young person. Early intervention, rather than traditional vocational rehabilitation, is the approach used. This study presents a contemporary description of occupational therapy employment support practice in mental health services for young people experiencing psychosis.

Play is fundamental to children's holistic development, encompassing cognitive, emotional, and social growth. Whereas play preferences are often shaped by sociocultural and environmental factors, limited research exists on how children from different Malaysian settings, particularly in East Malaysia, perceive and engage in play. This study explores the rationale behind play experiences and preferences among urban and rural children in Sarawak. A qualitative approach was employed to capture the experiences of 10 (n = 10) typically developing children aged 7 to 9years from both urban and rural areas in Sarawak. Participants were purposively selected and interviewed using a semi-structured protocol via Google Meet. Data were transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis. Consumers and community members were not involved in the development or implementation of the research or writing of the manuscript. Four major themes emerged: (1) play as a source of enjoyment and emotional fulfilment, (2) play preferences shaped by environment and accessibility, (3) social and relational dynamics of play, and (4) the structure of time and space in children's play. Children described play as a joyful, essential part of their daily lives. Urban children favoured digital and indoor play, whereas rural children preferred outdoor and imaginative play. Peer interactions, adult roles, and digital access significantly influenced their play preferences. Children in Sarawak demonstrate nuanced understandings of play that reflect their social, environmental, and developmental contexts. However, the small and ethnically limited sample (Malay and Lunbawang children only) constrains the generalisability of findings. These insights have important implications for designing child-centred, culturally responsive, and equitable play environments in therapeutic, educational, and policy settings.

Student placements provide a valuable opportunity to integrate theory into practice and prepare for future work roles in allied health. Innovative student placement models are required to meet placement demands and the changing scope of practice. The potential for placements in clinical research settings, in which the student is working alongside and learning from allied health clinicians working in research roles, remains under-explored. To explore the time use and activities completed by Australian allied health clinicians employed in research roles and explore how these align with student placement competencies. Cross-sectional design. Participants were asked to self-report time use over a 5-day period. Data were analysed and presented descriptively in terms of the nature of tasks completed and time spent on the tasks. Discipline-specific student placement assessment tools provided a framework to explore how the data aligned with competencies described in the assessment tools. Clinicians and educators were consulted during the study design phase. Five occupational therapists and five physiotherapists (n = 10 total) employed in a range of research roles completed a time use diary template. A total of 35 different types of tasks were recorded, which were grouped into 13 categories. Most time was spent in the category of clinical documentation and the least amount of time spent in the category of teaching and training. Mapping of tasks to the discipline-specific placement assessment tools showed that all student competencies were represented. Allied health clinicians employed in research roles could help students to meet required placement competencies by aligning research activities with student learning objectives. Completing placements under the supervision of these clinicians could provide opportunities that may bridge academic and clinical learning and highlight the value of research in clinical practice.