Strategies that facilitate participation in family activities of children and adolescents with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities: parents’ and personal assistants’ experiences

Abstract

Participation-facilitating strategies related to the child/adolescent and his or her proximal environments are identified to improve participation in children and adolescents with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (PIMD). Examples of strategies for the child's/adolescents' proximal environment include "good knowledge about the child/adolescent", and, for the child/adolescent, include creating "sense of belonging" and "opportunities to influence". Identifying and making these strategies explicit may assist in enhancing the participation of children and adolescents with PIMD in family activities. People in the child's/adolescent's proximal environment need to set the scene for participation.