How did youth with cerebral palsy perceive participation in everyday life after participating in a periodical intensive rehabilitation program based on adapted physical activity in groups? A qualitative interview study

Abstract

Purpose

Explore how youths with CP experience participation in everyday life, their experience of having participated in a periodical intensive rehabilitation programme and their expectations for the future.

Materials & methods

A qualitative design that included semi-structured interviews with 14 youths with CP (mean age 17 years).

Results

The qualitative content analysis exposed six themes, (1) Everyday life – to get the pieces of your life to fit together, (2) Participation means inclusion and belonging – the meaning of life, (3) Individual and environmental factors influencing participation, (4) Experience of physical and social activities away from home together with like-minded people, (5) To be continued locally, and (6) You do not know the future, anything can happen – visions for the future.

Conclusions

Participation in everyday life increases the meaning of life but takes energy. Periodical intensive rehabilitation programme enabled youths to try new activities, make friends and increase self-insight in their own strengths and limitations.

IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATION

• Young people with cerebral palsy (CP) describe participation as the meaning of life and state that it is essential for inclusion and being able to contribute to society

• Adaptation of environmental factors including collaboration across service sectors and capacity building in young people within their preferred life situations appear to be essential

• A periodical intensive rehabilitation, including adapted physical activities in groups, is recommended to provide peer learning and mastery experiences in young people with CP.

• Young people with CP seem to have the same hopes for the future as their typically developing peers

Keywords:

• Disability
• intensive rehabilitation
• participation
• youth

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank the youths who participated in this study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The Elsass Foundation is acknowledged for their support via grants. The Elsass Foundation had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.