This Capstone Project, with a focus in research, sought to identify a relationship between self-reported functional performance and participation restriction as described by satisfaction with one’s execution or participation in a described occupation. A correlational study design was employed under the mentorship of Dr. Thomas Decker, EdD, OTD, OTR/L who oversaw all IRB processes, documentation, study development and deployment, as well as co-authored and provided mentorship for creation of a publishable manuscript of this project. The established Health Assessment Questionnaire Disability Index (HAQ-DI) and the newer Keele Assessment of Participation (KAP) were the two outcome measures of focus for surveying participants diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) or similar arthritis-related conditions at a private medical practice. A significant positive correlation between the two outcome measures was identified in support of the hypothesis (p\u3c.001) indicative of moderate participation restriction for both the RA and arthritis-related populations. Results from this study indicate that assessment of factors pertaining to participation restriction rather than the sole assessment of an individual’s functional ability in rheumatology settings may be the key towards increasing referrals to skilled occupational therapy services as it is within the profession’s scope to further assess and treat factors limiting performance and participation in desired occupations. The potential collaboration between the two professions would attend to the physical function, quality of life, and overall well-being of the individual with RA or similar arthritic condition
