Hi guys, hope your pracs finished off well!
I have found on this ward (neurology) particularly that there is a huge overlap between what the OTs/OT students do with the patients and what we do. In other wards I have been on we seem to target different things and it works quite well, for example they would be assessing and working on showering, toileting, giving the equipment, fixing the home and looking at services once they leave hospital. However, in the ward I am currently on the OTs also target sitting balance, standing balance, UL function, motor recovery and bed mobility. This presents a problem in that the patients get very frustrated that, for example, the OT might see them in the morning and then I see them in the afternoon and I might assess muscle power, cerebellar signs & symptoms, sitting balance and standing balance and then perhaps work on rolling, facilitation of a recovering upper limb and standing balance, and patients get grumpy having to do the same things all again . Not to generalise too much but there are also mistakes made, perhaps from a poorer knowledge of anatomy - one OT student excitedly told a patient that he had return of his finger flexors when it was simply tenodesis occurring with wrist extension. I had to adjust for this on the ward by finding out what they were doing in their sessions and try to avoid doing those things to prevent overlap but it was disappointing as sometimes I felt that I could do a better job than what they were doing with particular things. I feel that there needs to be more of a line drawn as to who works on what to avoid patient frustration.
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Hey...
Working in the neurosurg ward - I found very similar things. There was a great overlap between what we do and what the OTs do - particularly with things like UL function, retraining some functional activities.
But I also think that there were some huge differences in what the OT does and what the PT does also.
The OT was involved in improving the patients short term memory, cognitive therapy, help with daily functional activities like dressing, toiletting and showering.
Whereas the physiotherapist really gets into improving the gross-motor function and focuses on how the patient can maintain sitting balance, start walking etc. and gives specific treatment towards improved function.
I guess - like u said - in a good practice - there needs to be communication between the PT and the OT - about what the patient can and cannot do. Also - If the PT has already assessed something - it is his/her responsibility to inform the nursing staff and the OT regarding this in team meetings or in person.
And also - every professional tries to look at a patient as a whole - rather than just the cognitive side or just the physical side. Since it's that way - communication between is very important - in order to avoid confusion and repetition.
Hope that helps.
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