Occupational Therapy’s Role in Geriatric Primary Care: Helping Pave the Way

Abstract

Older adults often have complex healthcare needs that are managed by a primary care physician (PCP). As the amount of older adults rises in the coming years, in combination with a potential shortage of PCPs, occupational therapists can start to play an important role in assisting in their care in this practice setting, as the scope of OT aligns with the preventative and holistic nature of primary care. The aim of this project was to assist with occupational therapy joining the healthcare team at a geriatric outpatient clinic by identifying an OT population need and assessing the effectiveness of the current process to meet that need, while also educating interdisciplinary colleagues about OT’s scope of practice and the benefits of team-based care. The results of this study indicated that the current process of screening and referring to outside agencies is not effective at meeting the occupational needs of the patients.