Library Health Sciences

The purpose of this study was to describe the experiences of women living with AIDS, and to explore the nature and effectiveness of occupational therapy interventions, which they received in their homes. By describing the effectiveness of those interventions in helping women with AIDS engage in those life role activities which are important to them the study intended to contribute to the Occupational Therapy knowledge base, and in so doing to ultimately improve the quality of services occupational therapists may provide to women with AIDS.
This qualitative study was conducted in the form of individual in - depth guided interviews with six women with AIDS who had received occupational therapy in their homes as part of a Home Health program. The research focused on examining two broad aspects of the women's experience: The Experience of Having AIDS and The Experience of Having Occupational Therapy. Utilizing a constant -comparative method, and employing inductive reasoning processes, eight major themes within the two categories were identified. Five themes reflecting the Experience of Having AIDS: The experience of having AIDS, What's meaningful How has what's meaningful changed ? How has the ability to do what's meaningful changed? How does one decide what's meaningful? Three themes reflecting the Experience of Having Occupational Therapy were elucidated: The experiences, what we did together, and the effect of having occupational therapy.
Three additional aspects, or subthemes, emerged from the interviews. 'My Relationships, My Body, and Taking Care of Myself', were issues which were central to the experience of dealing with this illness, and transected the five major themes related to the effects of having AIDS.
The women's experiences, have been compared to the activity of climbing a spiral staircase, in which the steps upon which one moves are constructed of the theme-components and the banister of support one might utilize is provided by occupational therapy. The staircase is envisioned as spiral because the women return to issues repeatedly, albeit with differing energy and insight as their illness progresses. The primary focus of the women's experiences was the effect of AIDS on the meaning of their lives, as exemplified in their relationships. They perceived their occupational therapy as being relationship-based experiences which had been helpful to them in coping with their illness.

Dr. Ruth A.M. Meyers received a Bachelor of Science degree in Occupational Therapy at Boston University, and an Advanced Masters, and a PhD in Occupational Therapy at New York University. Her clinical practice has included work in HIV/AIDS, Community Mental Health, School-Based Practice, Gerontology, and Home Health. She has held numerous positions as faculty member Occupational Therapy Programs, including those of Dominican College of New York, Russell Sage College, New York University, Maria College, Virginia Commonwealth University, and San Jose State University. Her primary teaching responsibilities have focused on psychosocial practice and Occupational Therapy Theory. She has also served as Program Director of several graduate level Occupational Therapy Departments, as well as traveling and lecturing internationally. Dr. Meyers recently expanded her experience to include work with individuals who speak English as a second language. For nearly10 years Dr. Meyers’ clinical work focused primarily on Occupational Therapy intervention for persons with AIDS, with a particular emphasis on the care of Women; it is from this experience that this dissertation research evolved.