Consumer empowerment through occupational therapy: The Americans With Disabilities Act Title III

Objective. The purpose of this study was to determine whether occupational therapists (a) value a role educating consumers about the Americans With Di sabilities Act of 1990 (ADA; Public Law 101-336); (b) are knowledgeable reg arding Title III of the ADA; and (c) implement provisions and empower consu mers who use wheelchairs to access public accommodations. Method. A random sample of 510 occupational therapists was surveyed, with 2 23 responding. Of those surveys returned, 152 respondents who serve clients who use wheelchairs met inclusion criteria. Results. Although 90% of the participants agreed that occupational therapis ts should have ADA knowledge and should educate consumers, the mean score o f ADA accessibility knowledge on a 10-point quiz was 1.85. The mean score o f reported actions to implement ADA provisions with clients was 11.78 of a possible 40 points. There was a significant positive correlation between im plementation and attitude (r = .3603, p = .01) and between implementation a nd knowledge (r = .3376 p = .01); however, the correlation between attitude and knowledge (r = .1673, p = .05) was not significant. Conclusion. Therapists' lack of knowledge and their self-reported inaction with regard to ADA Title III may affect the accessibility of the environmen t independence, and empowerment of clients who are wheelchair mobile and th erefore, may impede progress toward fully inclusive communities.