Perceived impact of autism assistance service dog partnership on occupational participation in children with autism

A cross-sectional online survey design was used to illuminate caregivers' perceived impact of an autism assistant service dog (AASD) partnership on the occupations of their child with autism spectrum disorder. The nine categories of occupation as outlined in the <i>Occupational Therapy Practice Framework: Domain and Process Fourth Edition</i> (OTPF-4) informed this study and include: activities of daily living, instrumental activities of daily living, health management, rest and sleep, education, work, play, leisure, and social participation (AOTA [1], p.7). Participants included 54 caregivers of children with autism that have been partnered with an AASD. Results indicated the occupations perceived to be most strongly and positively impacted were emotional and mental health management (75.5%, <i>n</i> = 40), social engagement with community (75.5%, <i>n</i> = 40), shopping (69.2%, <i>n</i> = 36), medical appointments (63.5%, <i>n</i> = 33), sleep preparation (60.4%, <i>n</i> = 32), care of pets (59.3%, <i>n</i> = 32) and safety awareness (59.3%, <i>n</i> = 32). When determining referrals for AASDs, practitioners should determine if deficits exist in one or more of these pertinent occupations as they are the ones most likely to be positively impacted. In addition, across all occupational categories, with few exceptions, occupational impacts of the AASD were reported as neutral to strongly positive. Finally, based on the positive occupational impacts, occupational therapists and other health professionals should consider integrating the use of AASDs during intervention to enhance outcomes.