A Framework for Addressing Clients' Functional Cognitive Deficits After COVID-19.

Watters, Kelsey; Marks, Timothy S; Edwards, Dorothy F; Skidmore, Elizabeth R; Giles, Gordon Muir

Occupational therapy's focus on functional cognition offers a distinct approach to the assessment of and intervention for occupational performance deficits that may follow coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Although the majority of people survive COVID-19, many people experience persistent functional cognitive sequelae severe enough to interfere with occupational performance. After COVID-19, people may be categorized as either (1) those who experience severe or critical illness requiring hospitalization or (2) those with mild to moderate presentations of the virus without hospitalization. A third group of those who do not have ongoing signs of active infection but who experience new, lasting, or deteriorating symptoms has begun to emerge and may represent a distinct COVID-19 long-haul syndrome. By following the Occupational Therapy Practice Framework and using established processes for occupational therapy assessment and treatment of functional cognition, occupational therapy practitioners can tailor assessments and interventions to meet clients' needs.