An Occupational Therapy Needs Assessment for an organization attending to children with autism spectrum disorder in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Aim: To identify the occupational therapy needs at the Nehemiah Autism Center by completing a needs assessment. Method: A mixed-methods design was adopted to construct a comprehensive needs assessment to identify the... [ view full abstract ]

Aim: To identify the occupational therapy needs at the Nehemiah Autism Center by completing a needs assessment. Method: A mixed-methods design was adopted to construct a comprehensive needs assessment to identify the occupational therapy needs. Result: All areas of what an occupational therapist could assist with were selected as an area of need. Communication and social skills were most frequently reported and behavior management was ranked as most important among caregivers. Among staff members, leisure and play was reported most frequently and stress management was ranked as most important. Training opportunities, communication among staff members, and co-worker relationship were identified to be supporting factors in achieving the organization's goal. Stigma, religion, and cultural diversity were reported to be unsupportive factors. Conclusion: There is a great need for occupational therapy services to attend to children with autism spectrum disorder at Nehemiah Autism Center in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Keywords: Developing country. Habilitation. Health. Horn of Africa. Low-income country. Mental health. Neurological. PEOP-model. Sub-Saharan Africa.