Promoting Use of Occupation-Based Interventions in Hand Therapy

Abstract

Occupational therapy has a unique scope of practice in that meaningful activities are used as interventions to increase a patient’s function and independence in their daily life. One specific setting in which occupational therapists work is the field of hand therapy. Occupational therapists (OT) who specialize in the upper extremity are Certified Hand Therapists (CHT). Within hand therapy, many interventions are biomechanical in nature meaning they are exercises focused on increasing strength or range of motion. This poses a challenge for OTs in this setting as it can be difficult to maintain the core of occupational therapy in ensuring interventions are meaningful and occupation-based. Research suggests that occupation-based interventions (OBI) for patients with upper extremity conditions results in better patient outcomes by increasing occupational performance and satisfaction while reducing psychological distress. Therefore, the purpose of this capstone project was to increase the implementation of OBI in a hand therapy setting while gaining advanced clinical skills. To increase the frequency of OBI in the hand therapy clinic, an Activity of Daily Living (ADL) board was developed as a way to eliminate existing barriers at the capstone site. To gain advanced clinical skills in hand therapy, the student spent a majority of each day working alongside a CHT to complete patient care. Overall, the ADL board positively impacted the capstone site by reducing barriers to OBI implementation through the support of a cost-effective, convenient, tangible resource.