Scoping Review of Self-Advocacy Education Interventions to Improve Care

Self-advocacy is a client’s ability to represent one’s interests when managing disease or disability. Self-advocacy may increase one’s ability to seek, evaluate, and use information to promote health, yet little is known about the role of occupational therapy in promoting self-advocacy. This scoping review aims to identify interventions within occupational therapists’ scope of practice to improve self-advocacy. A literature search was conducted through Academic Search Complete to identify interventions within the scope of occupational therapy that promote self-advocacy. All levels of evidence were included, and articles were reviewed for inclusion by two authors. Included articles were charted for level of evidence, objectives, participants, and results. Fourteen articles met the criteria. Interventions included interactive multimedia interventions, peer-led educational groups, writing interventions, job counseling and advocacy, and disease-specific advocacy programs. Occupational therapists are well-equipped to intervene and promote self-advocacy through workplace modification, utilizing assistive technologies, and facilitating peer-led educational groups.