Experiences of hydrotherapy for those working with children with global developmental delay in a school: a qualitative study

Pearce, H. (2023) Experiences of hydrotherapy for those working with children with global developmental delay in a school: a qualitative study. Masters theses, University of Chichester.

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Abstract

Global developmental delay results in children being significantly delayed in two or more developmental domains. Despite the benefits of hydrotherapy on children with other neurological conditions, there has been no research conducted on children with global developmental delays. This research study aims to explore the impact of hydrotherapy on children with global developmental delay from the teachers’ perspectives and find out more about their experiences. The study used a qualitative research design comprising of nine participants employed by non-probability sampling. The participants were educational professionals at the special needs college, who were involved with hydrotherapy. Data was collected via semi-structured interviews through either a dictaphone or a virtual platform on a laptop in a secure location. A thematic analysis was then conducted on Microsoft Word using the inductive approach, which involved the ICF Framework, revealing the following themes 1)Body functions and structures 2) Psychosocial benefits for the children 3) Negative experiences of hydrotherapy 4) Positive experiences of hydrotherapy 5) Activities and participation in hydrotherapy. To further analyse the data, second-level categories that had been previously identified from the ICF framework were used to determine the strength of each theme from the semi-structured interviews. In conclusion, the educational professionals felt that hydrotherapy was an effective therapeutic intervention for children with global developmental delay in terms of their physical and cognitive health, whilst also providing them with an opportunity to be active. From the educational professionals’ perspectives, overall hydrotherapy provided a positive experience for both themselves and the children. These findings support other research studies conducted on hydrotherapy and children with autism, Down syndrome and cerebral palsy, therefore further contributing to the field of hydrotherapy. These findings may enhance the implementation of hydrotherapy into specialist school settings for children with global developmental delays.

Publication Type: Theses (Masters)
Uncontrolled Keywords: children, disability, global development delay, learning, aquatic therapy, rehabilitation, neurological
Subjects: H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General)
Q Science > Q Science (General)
R Medicine > RJ Pediatrics
R Medicine > RT Nursing
Divisions: Academic Areas > School of Nursing and Allied Health > Physiotherapy
Student Research > Masters
Depositing User: Angela Roberts
Date Deposited: 08 May 2024 10:47
Last Modified: 08 May 2024 10:47
URI: https://eprints.chi.ac.uk/id/eprint/7499

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