Is the Y-PEM useful for me? Perspectives of youth with visual impairment

PurposeTo explore how youth with visual impairments perceive the usefulness of the Y-PEM (Youth and Young-adult Participation and Environment Measure) in capturing their participation and how information generated contributes to their understanding of participation experiences.Materials and methodsA qualitative descriptive design was employed among 11 youth with visual impairment (3 females, 8 males) aged 17-24 (x over bar = 21, SD = 2.6) involving two remote sessions one week apart. First, the Y-PEM and QQ-10 questionnaire were administered to evaluate Y-PEM's utility (value and burden), analyzed descriptively. Then, youth reflected on their Y-PEM results via an individual semi-structured Stimulated Recall Interview (SRI), analyzed thematically.ResultsA mean value-score of 77% (SD = 10.4) and burden-score of 19% (SD = 5.6) on the QQ-10 indicated the Y-PEM was perceived as valuable with relatively low burden. Three themes emerged from the interviews. Insights on participation revealed increased awareness of participation patterns and environmental factors. This led to a reflection on personal attributes about levels of comfort and familiarity, efforts required to participate, and personal preferences influencing participation experiences. Finally, approaches to participation elucidated strategies used in decision-making processes about pursuing participation.ConclusionFindings suggest the Y-PEM is useful in capturing and promoting reflection of youth's participation patterns and environmental supports/barriers. The Y-PEM PEM (Youth and Young-adult Participation and Environment Measure) appears to provide a meaningful way for youth with visual impairments to understand their participation patterns and experiencesDiscussing youth's results of the Y-PEM with them can lead to new insights and reflections about their participation preferences, environmental barriers and supports, and other influential personal and external factors on their participationUsing the Y-PEM as a tool to facilitate this reflection and discussion about youth's participation can guide therapy interventions focused on participation through eliciting meaningful client-centered goals as well as strategies to address environmental barriers