MOHO's Impact on Life Skills & QoL in Mentally Ill Offenders: A Tamil Nadu Study

Mentally ill offenders represent a particularly vulnerable forensic population, frequently exhibiting impaired life skills and reduced quality of life (QoL) as a consequence of prolonged institutionalisation and limited occupational engagement. This quasi-experimental study examined the effectiveness of a 12-week Model of Human Occupation (MOHO)-based occupational therapy programme delivered to 12 purposively sampled mentally ill offenders in the Prisoners' Ward, Central Prison, Puzhal, Chennai, India. Participants received 24 structured occupational therapy sessions delivered twice weekly. Life skills were assessed using the Vellore Occupational Therapy Evaluation Scale (VOTES), and quality of life was measured using the World Health Organization Quality of Life - Brief Version (WHOQOL-BREF). Paired-sample analysis (IBM SPSS Statistics, Version 29) revealed statistically significant improvement in life skills (p = .006), whereas no significant changes were observed across the four WHOQOL-BREF domains (p > .05). Findings indicate that MOHO-based interventions effectively enhance life skills in this forensic mental health population, supporting the integration of occupational therapy into forensic psychiatric rehabilitation programmes. The limited impact on perceived quality of life warrants further investigation through extended and individually tailored intervention designs.

Inclusion criteria

• Offenders committed crimes under the section IPC & CrPc of Indian Constitution April,1 1974 Offenders from age 18 to 64 (14.1 % to 13.9 % Male prevalence) Male offenders with or without differential diagnosis of psychotic symptoms HCR-20 V3 Risk assessment tool score ranging from low to moderate level Short Orientation Memory Concentration Test (OMCT) scores ranging from 0-19

Exclusion criteria

• Offenders with Physical disabilities Offenders with Activity Limitations