CURRENT STUDIES
2023-present. University of New Hampshire, Department of Occupational Therapy. Smith, S.L. & Hardock, A. The purpose of this study is to examine the content validity of the Healthy Families Profile, a self-developed assessment tool examining family health constructs based on Dr. Smith's Healthy Families Model. Portions of this project were completed in fulfillment of Ms. Ashley Hardock's undergraduate honors thesis which were presented at the 2024 University of New Hampshire's Undergraduate Research Conference.
PREVIOUS RELATED STUDIES
2021-2023. University of New Hampshire, Department of Occupational Therapy. Thompson, A.L., & Smith, S.L. The purpose of this study was to examine experiences of grief, coping, and life navigation for parents of children with chronic health conditions. Results were presented at the 2024 American Occupational Therapy Association Annual Conference, Orlando, FL., and are currently submitted for peer-reviewed publication.
2020-2022. University of New Hampshire, Department of Occupational Therapy. Smith, S.L. The purpose of this project was to examine the preliminary effects of Dr. Smith's Healthy Families Flourish Program on supporting family activity participation for families raising children with complex health care needs. The project also examined participant satisfaction with the telehealth approach to parent coaching. Portions of this study were presented at the presented at the 2023 American Occupational Therapy Association Annual Conference, Kansas City, MO., 2022 American Occupational Therapy Association Annual Conference, San Antonio, TX., and the 2022 AUCD Annual Conference (Washington, DC), the Northeastern Regional Telehealth Center Conference (Southbridge, MA). Study findings are published in OTJR: Occupation, Participation & Health.
2020-2022. University of New Hampshire, Department of Occupational Therapy, Smith, S.L., Vaquerano, J., Humphreys, E.P, & Aytur, S.A. The purpose of this study was to examine parent satisfaction with the telehealth approach to parent coaching of the Healthy Families Flourish Program. Dr. Humphreys presented portions of the findings at the 2022 Association of University Centers on Disabilities Annual Conference in Washington D.C., and Dr. Smith presented the findings at the 2022 American Occupational Therapy Association's National INSPIRE Conference in San Antonio, TX. The findings are published in OTJR: Occupation, Participation & Health.
2020-2021. University of New Hampshire, Department of Occupational Therapy. Smith, S.L., & Rita, C. The purpose of this study was to examine the preliminary effects of Dr. Smith's Healthy Families Flourish Program on supporting family health and family occupational participation for families with children with autism spectrum disorder. This project was part of the larger family health study examining families with children with complex health care needs and was completed in fulfillment of Ms. Carli Rita's undergraduate honors thesis. This study was presented at the 2022 American Occupational Therapy Association's Annual INSPIRE Conference in San Antonio, TX. and also at the 2021 University of New Hampshire Undergraduate Research Conference.
2019-2020. University of New Hampshire, Department of Occupational Therapy. Preble, E. & Smith, S.L. The purpose of this study was to examine changes experienced by caregivers when their child/youth with complex needs transitioned out of the school system. Ms. Preble presented this study at the 2020 Virtual Undergraduate Research Conference and can be viewed here. Study findings were also presented at the 2021 American Occupational Therapy Association's Annual Virtual INSPRIRE Conference.
2018-2020. University of New Hampshire, Department of Occupational Therapy. Smith, S.L. & DeGrace, B. The purpose of this study was to examine the factors and processes that support strong family health and how families' everyday activities relate to family health for three groups of families: 1) families with children with disabilities including but not limited to: autism spectrum disorder, ADHD, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, intellectual disabilities, and spina bifida; 2) families with children with chronic health conditions including but not limited to asthma, cancer, congenital heart disease, cystic fibrosis, and Type I diabetes; and 3) families with typically developing children. Findings generated Family Health Constructs, and these findings were accepted at the 2020 American Occupational Therapy Association's Annual Conference in Boston, MA and presented at the 2019 New Hampshire Occupational Therapy Association Annual Conference in Manchester, NH.
2018-2019. University of New Hampshire, Department of Occupational Therapy. Smith S.L. & McQuade, H.C. The purpose of this study was to examine families experiences of health for families raising children with autism spectrum disorder. Ms. Hannah McQuade, OT student, conducted research for this project as her undergraduate honors thesis. She was funded by the UNH Hamel Center for Undergraduate Research. This study was presented at the 2019 American Occupational Therapy Association Annual Conference, New Orleans, LA. as well as at the Undergraduate Research Conference, University of New Hampshire, April 2019. This study is published in Autism.
2018-2019. University of New Hampshire, Department of Occupational Therapy. Smith, S.L. & Melanson, A.L. The purpose of this study was to examine the attributes of everyday occupations that families identified that made them feel most like a family and exemplified who they were as a family. Specifically, we explored the areas of occupation and six attributes of family occupations. Study findings were accepted for presentation at the 2020 American Occupational Therapy Association's Annual Conference in Boston, MA. This research abstract is published in the American Journal of Occupational Therapy.
2014-2015. University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, College of Allied Health. Smith, S.L., Ciro, C., Bax, A., Hambrick, A., James, J., Evans, A., & DeGrace, B. Exploring families’ experiences of health: A preliminary family health model. Dr. Smith completed a study examining factors and processes supporting robust family health for families with typically developing children. From this, the research team developed a preliminary family health model which requires further testing to see the extent to which the constructs hold across more diverse and numerous family structures and needs. This study is published in Psychology, Health, and Medicine.
2014-2015. Creighton University, School of Pharmacy and Health Professions. Smith, S.L., Jaso, M., & Petersen, M. Parental perspectives of occupational therapy interventions for their child with autism spectrum disorder. The purpose of this study was to examine the in-depth parental perceptions of the OT services their child diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) received, including the benefits and barriers faced.
2012-2013. University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, College of Allied Health. Smith, S.L., Ramey, E., Sisson, S.B., Richardson, S., & DeGrace, B. The family meal model: Influences on family mealtime participation. The purpose of this study was to examine families’ perspectives regarding facilitators and barriers to family mealtime routines given the social and nutritional benefits of the family meal. This study is published in the OTJR: Occupation, Participation and Health.
2012. University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, College of Allied Health. DeGrace, B., Sloop, J., Smith, S., Brock, A. Families with children with autism: An exploration of family health. The purpose of this study was to explicate families’ perceptions of the family health construct for families raising a child with autism spectrum disorder.
PREVIOUS ADDITIONAL STUDIES
2017. Creighton University, School of Pharmacy and Health Professions. Watson, M.A, Jewell, V.D., & Smith, S.L. Journey interrupted: A phenomenological exploration of miscarriage. The purpose of this study was to understand the lived experience of women coping with unexpected pregnancy loss to better understand the influence of miscarriage on relationships, perceptions of motherhood, and the meaning of occupation in the context of grief. This study is published in the Open Journal of Occupational Therapy. You can also listen to a podcast presented by the American Occupational Therapy Association's Rehabilitation and Disability's Special Interest Section here.
2016-2017. Creighton University, School of Pharmacy and Health Professions. Villasenor, R., Smith, S.L., & Jewell, V. Systematic Review of Sound-Based Interventions to Improve Participation in Education. The purpose of this study was to aggregate existing evidence in using SBI and effectiveness on improving school participation among children with sensory processing dysfunction. This study is published in the Journal of Occupational Therapy in Schools and Early Intervention.
2016-2017. Creighton University, School of Pharmacy and Health Professions. Belarmino, J., Smith, S.L., & Jewell, V.D. Extent of Use and Linkage of the ICF to Frames of Reference and Interventions in Pediatric Occupational Therapy. The purpose of this study was to obtain preliminary data on pediatric OT’s use of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) in clinical decision making regarding selection of frame(s) of reference, and targeted areas of intervention, and to link these to the ICF domains. This study is published in the Annals of International Occupational Therapy.
2016-2017. Creighton University, School of Pharmacy and Health Professions. Alcala, F., DeZess, J., Golz, M., & Smith, S.L. Alaska native culture and occupational therapy: Practitioner perspectives. The primary purpose of this study was to examine Alaskan OT’s perspectives about service provision for Alaska Native individuals. This study was presented at the 2018 American Occupational Therapy Association's Annual Conference in Salt Lake City, UT. This research abstract is published in the American Journal of Occupational Therapy.