SUZANNE M. WHITE
M.A. OTR/L, FAOTA
“What I like about it is that you learn about how to manage your job like going to an appointment on time or how you live your life. It gets your ready when you don’t want to act like a child anymore and just manage your time.”
Let's Get Organized
Through her work at a residential therapeutic drug community, Suzanne saw that many clients lacked basic skills that would be necessary for successful drug-free lives after discharge. Difficulties managing daily routines, keeping appointments and setting priorities often led to loss of services or employment, suspension from school, or legal and other social problems. In many situations, these difficulties served as catalysts for clients in a downward spiral in their medical and psychiatric conditions.
Using occupational therapy theory, Suzanne developed a modular group program consisting of two one-hour sessions per week for a period of 10 weeks. She named the program, “Occupational Therapy: Let’s Get Organized”. Clients enjoyed the group sessions and reported that they were able to use their new calendar and recording skills in real-life activities.
What I like about it is that
you learn about how to manage your job like going to an appointment on time or how you live your life.
It gets you ready when you don’t want to act like a child anymore and just manage your time.
Other professional staff noticed observable improvements in clients’ keeping track of time and appointments, becoming organized, and following through with their individual responsibilities.
This cognitively-based time management and organizational program for people with co-occurring disorders is now being used at Palladia Inc. in the Bronx, NY, and at John Hopkins in Maryland in their program, Broadway Center for Addiction, in addition to numerous occupational therapy clinics in Sweden. Over the past several years, Suzanne has presented this program to state and national audiences and at international conferences.
In Fälun on September 24 & 25 2014, Dr. Janeslätt and Professor White, trained new team leaders to expand the program to adult physical rehabilitation and outpatient psychiatry facilities. These twenty-one participants from Dalarna, Gävleborg, Uppsala, Örebro and Linköping will pilot the next phase of the research as LGO group leaders or as the program is know in Swedish as Håll Koll på Tiden.
Health Care Innovation Exchange, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).
Pilot Study of Let's Get Organized: A Group Intervention for Improving Time Management
To cite this article:
Marie Holmefur, Kajsa Lidström-Holmqvist, Afsaneh Hayat Roshanay, Patrik Arvidsson, Suzanne White, Gunnel Janeslätt; Pilot Study of Let’s Get Organized: A Group Intervention for Improving Time Management. Am J Occup Ther 2019;73(5):7305205020.
To link to this article:
https://doi.org/10.5014/ajot.2019.032631
Summary
Pilot test for the first part of the Let’s Get Organized occupational therapy intervention in a Swedish context exploring enhancements of time management skills, aspects of executive functioning, and satisfaction with daily occupations in people with time management difficulties because of neurodevelopmental or mental disorders. 55 participants with confirmed or suspected mental or neurodevelopmental disorders and self-reported difficulties with time management in daily life participated in 10 weekly group sessions of 1.5 hr as part of the Let’s Get Organized Part 1 program. Participants displayed significantly improved time management, organization and planning skills, and emotional regulation, as well as satisfaction with daily occupations. Aspects of executive functioning were partly improved. ATMS-S results were sustained at 3 month follow-up.
The article is copyrighted and reposted with permission The American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.
Assessment of Time Management Skills: Psychometric Properties of the Swedish Version
To cite this article:
Gunnel Kristina Janeslätt, Kajsa Lidström Holmqvist, Suzanne White & Marie Holmefur (2018) Assessment of time management skills: psychometric properties of the Swedish version, Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy, 25:3, 153-161, DOI: 10.1080/11038128.2017.1375009
To link to this article:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/11038128.2017.1375009
Summary:
Persons with impaired time management skills are often in need of occupational therapy. Valid and reliable instruments to assess time management and organizational skills are needed for the evaluation of intervention. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of a Swedish version of the Assessment of Time management Skills (ATMS-S) for persons with and without impaired time management skills. 238 persons participated in the study, of whom 94 had self-reported impaired time management skills due to mental disorders such as schizophrenic spectrum or neurodevelopmental disorders, and 144 persons had no reported impaired time management skills. This study concluded that the ATMS-S is a valid instrument for self-rating of time management, organization & planning and for the regulation of emotions.
Collaborative Use of Weekly Calendar Planning Activity and Assessment of Time Management Skills
Suzanne White, MA OTR FAOTA
To Cite this article:
White, S. (2017). Collaborative use of Weekly Calendar Planning Activity and Assessment of Time Management Skills. SIS Quarterly Practice Connections, 2(4), 16–18.
Summary: Occupational therapists have long understood that purposeful use of time is central to the profession, as both health maintaining and health producing Presently, most common time-related assessments are nonstandardized and capture the person’s lifestyle by describing time use for part of the day (Bejerholm & Eklund, 2004). But these assessments do not describe behavioral strategies (e.g., starting difficult activities when feeling most alert) nor do they examine underlying executive function (e.g., supporting poor memory with cognitive strategies of listing tasks to remember) for actively managing one’s day. With these gaps, this article proposes beginning evidence needed to jointly understand time management and executive functioning for clinical practice. The Weekly Calendar Planning Activity (WCPA; Toglia, 2015) assesses executive function, yielding in-depth data on performance of a complex, cognitive instrumental activity of daily living through organizing a weekly calendar. The Assessment of Time Management Skills (ATMS; White et al., 2013) provides efficient and effective analysis of client time management performances and self-evaluations of competence. This case study demonstrated, WCPA and ATMS in-depth analyses guided interventions to support greater executive functioning performance through enhanced cognitive strategies, recognition of emotional impact on performance, and incorporation of cognitive adaptors
The article is copyrighted and reposted with permission The American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.
Occupational Therapy in Mental Health
Assessment of Time Management Skills
(ATMS): A Practice-Based Outcome Questionnaire
To cite this article:
Suzanne M. White, Anne Riley & Peter Flom (2013) Assessment of Time Management Skills (ATMS): A Practice-Based Outcome Questionnaire, Occupational Therapy in Mental Health, 29:3, 215-231
To link to this article:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0164212X.2013.819481
Abstract
This study assessed test–retest reliability and internal consistency of the Assessment of Time Management Skills (ATMS), a self-report questionnaire designed to assess awareness and use time management strategies to plan and manage daily life tasks. Participants included 18 to 65 year-old people (N = 241) from the general population. The questionnaire's content validity was established. The tool demonstrated good internal consistency (α = 0.86). Test–retest reliability for the score revealed a Pearson Coefficient of Correlation (PCC) r = 0.89. The ATMS may be a useful tool for evaluating the effectiveness of rehabilitation designed to improve time management skills.
The article is copyrighted and reposted with permission The American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.
KEYWORDS time management, co-occurring disorders, severe mental illness, substance-related disorders, reproducibility of results
OT Cognitive Adaptation: An Intervention in Time Management for
Persons With Co-Occurring Conditions
Suzanne White, Stacey-Anne Meade, and Lori Hadar
Summary
Providing practical skills for everyday living can have far-reaching effects on clients' lives. The prevalence of individuals with co-occurring mental disorders and substance abuse disorders is remarkably high. In 2002, 17.5 million adults age 18 and older (8%) were estimated to have serious mental illness. Of these, 4 million (23%) were also dependent on or abused alcohol or an illicit drug. These individuals with co-occurring mental disorders and substance abuse disorders often exhibit cognitive impairments that have a negative impact on their ability to function in many areas of daily activity, including organizational skills and time management. Yet despite the high rate of co-occurring conditions, few interventions exist that address the cognitive needs of this population.
For individuals with co-occurring mental disorders and substance abuse disorders, interventions that focus on cognitive adaptation strategies may help to create more satisfying life patterns. The Occupational Therapy Practice Framework: Domain and Process (Framework) states, "Engagement in occupation to support participation in context is the focus and targeted end objective of occupational therapy intervention"
Performance patterns, as defined in the Framework, refer to habits, routines, and roles that are adopted by an individual as he or she carries out occupational or daily life activities. Time management and organization are useful habits that support performance in daily life and contribute to life satisfaction.
White, S.M., Meade, S.A, Hadar, L. (2007, June 25). OT cognitive adaptation: an intervention in time management for persons with co-occurring conditions. OT Practice, 9-14.
Download the OT Practice online (In PDF format)
The article is copyrighted and reposted with permission The American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.
Let's Get Organized: An Intervention for Persons With Co-occurring Disorders
Suzanne White, M.A., O.T.R.
Psychiatric Services 2007; doi: 10.1176/appi.ps.58.5.713
http://ps.psychiatryonline.org/article.aspx?articleID=98050
Clean Sweep: Clientsas Role Models to Teach Organizational Skills
Zenny Chen
Gabriel Nuamah
Katherine Sperry
PSYCHIATRIC SERVICES ps.psychiatryonline.org November 2014 Vol. 65 No. 11
http://ps.psychiatryonline.org/doi/full/10.1176/appi.ps.650703