The Essential Role of Recreational Therapy in Aquatics Programming for Children with Autism

Authors

  • Lisa Mische Lawson University of Kansas Medical Center
  • Lauren Foster University of Kansas Medical Center
  • Cole Surber City of Merriam, KS
  • Kayla Hamner University of Kansas Medical Center

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18666/TRJ-2025-V59-I1-12558

Keywords:

Aquatics, Autism, Interprofessional, Recreational Therapy

Abstract

 

 The purpose of this conceptual paper is to highlight the essential role of therapeutic recreation on an interdisciplinary team providing swimming and water-safety lessons to individuals with autism. The interdisciplinary team includes recreational therapy, occupational therapy, and community recreation professionals. The program, Sensory Enhanced Aquatics, was developed by recreational and occupational therapists and initially offered in an academic medical center. Sensory Enhanced Aquatics grew to be offered in collaboration with local recreation agencies to better serve the community and extend the healthcare continuum. Literature related to recreational therapy and autism, interprofessional collaborative practice, and adapted aquatics is reviewed to provide context. This manuscript delineates roles of the Sensory Enhanced Aquatics team through categories contributing to effective interprofessional collaboration: bridging gaps, negotiating overlap, and creating spaces. A case example of Sensory Enhanced Aquatics provides details of the successful interprofessional collaborative practice.

Downloads

Published

2025-03-02

Issue

Vol. 59 No. 1 (2025)

Section

Special Issue

License

Sagamore Publishing LLC (hereinafter the “Copyright Owner”)

Journal Publishing Copyright Agreement for Authors

PLEASE REVIEW OUR POLICIES AND THE PUBLISHING AGREEMENT, AND INDICATE YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF THE TERMS BY CHECKING THE ‘AGREE TO THE TERMS OF THIS COPYRIGHT NOTICE’ CHECKBOX BELOW.

I understand that by submitting an article to Therapeutic Recreation Journal, I am granting the copyright to the article submitted for consideration for publication in Therapeutic Recreation Journal to the Copyright Owner. If after consideration of the Editor of the Therapeutic Recreation Journal, the article is not accepted for publication, all copyright covered under this agreement will be automatically returned to the Author(s).

THE PUBLISHING AGREEMENT

Assignment of Copyright

I hereby assign to the Copyright Owner the copyright in the manuscript I am submitting in this online procedure and any tables, illustrations or other material submitted for publication as part of the manuscript in all forms and media (whether now known or later developed), throughout the world, in all languages, for the full term of copyright, effective when the article is accepted for publication.

Reversion of Rights

Articles may sometimes be accepted for publication but later be rejected in the publication process, even in some cases after public posting in “Articles in Press” form, in which case all rights will revert to the Author.

Retention of Rights for Scholarly Purposes

I understand that I retain or am hereby granted the Retained Rights. The Retained Rights include the right to use the Preprint, Accepted Manuscript, and the Published Journal Article for Personal Use and Internal Institutional Use.

All journal material is under a 12 month embargo. Authors who would like to have their articles available as open access should contact Sagamore-Venture for further information.

In the case of the Accepted Manuscript and the Published Journal Article, the Retained Rights exclude Commercial Use, other than use by the author in a subsequent compilation of the author’s works or to extend the Article to book length form or re-use by the author of portions or excerpts in other works.

Published Journal Article: the author may share a link to the formal publication through the relevant DOI.

Author Representations

  • The Article I have submitted to the journal for review is original, has been written by the stated author(s) and has not been published elsewhere.
  • The Article was not submitted for review to another journal while under review by this journal and will not be submitted to any other journal.
  • The Article contains no libelous or other unlawful statements and does not contain any materials that violate any personal or proprietary rights of any other person or entity.
  • I have obtained written permission from copyright owners for any excerpts from copyrighted works that are included and have credited the sources in the Article.
  • If the Article was prepared jointly with other authors, I have informed the co-author(s) of the terms of this Journal Publishing Agreement and that I am signing on their behalf as their agent, and I am authorized to do so.