Date of Award

4-2024

Degree Type

Capstone Project

Degree Name

Doctor of Occupational Therapy (OTD)

Department

Occupational Therapy

First Advisor

Kathrine Sarabia

Second Advisor

Holly Grieves

Abstract

Feeding is an important occupation that contributes to a child’s physical, emotional, and social development and is also influenced by cultural and environmental factors, (Korth & Maune, 2020). In individuals with developmental delays, specifically autism spectrum disorder (ASD), feeding difficulties have been reported in as many as 75% of children (Nygren et al., 2021). These difficulties often result in increased feelings of anxiety experienced by the child and caregiver. Limited information exists on the impact of these on minority populations, such as Spanish speaking families that face many challenges when accessing healthcare services like language and cultural barriers. Similarly, group formats to address these difficulties have been largely unexplored. Occupational therapists possess the skills and holistic view required to support this occupation. This capstone project focused on the development of a bilingual feeding program for Hispanic children with ASD. The goals of this project included the implementation of a 6 - week feeding program for children and their parents, creation of bilingual educational handouts, analysis of program effectiveness and satisfaction, and initiatives for the sustainability of the program. The results support the use of group formats to address feeding difficulties in children with ASD and the positive impact on reducing caregiver stress, thus, supporting occupational therapy’s role in addressing this area.

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