Occupational Therapy and Rehabilitation for Work

Abstract

The use of occupational therapy in work rehabilitation has diminished over the last 20 years. Therapy resources have been diverted to the acute sector as a response to the pressure within National Health Service trusts to achieve early discharges. Occupational therapy in the United Kingdom has therefore suffered a loss of facilities and of therapists experienced in returning injured or ill employees to work. This contrasts with the development of occupational therapy in work rehabilitation abroad. Occupational therapists, through their education and training, have the potential to develop the necessary skills to assess and treat injured employees to return them to work. There exists a significant number of employees at work and absent from work with musculoskeletal problems, who need the services of occupational therapists specialising in work rehabilitation. The aim of this article is to provide an overview of the current status of work rehabilitation, to give an example of a therapist-led work rehabilitation intervention with a client and to demonstrate the unique role that occupational therapy played in assisting in the client's return to work.

Occupational Therapy Interventions in Chronic Pain – A Systematic Review

“…A majority of the nine descriptive studies were found to have the lowest level of evidence, and the remaining two studies had a level of evidence of 3 and 2, respectively (Table ). The studies covered a variety of content: OT interventions based on the needs of people with chronic pain (Müllersdorf and Söderback, ); approaches and tools for occupational therapists (Sim and Adams, , Rochman and Kennedy‐Spaien, ); OT on patient's return to work (Innes et al, ; Joss ; Paquette, ); as well as specific interventions such as energy‐saving practices (Dreiling, ), activity pacing (Birkholtz et al, ) and mindfulness (Walloch, ).…”

“…Five studies addressed the interaction between the occupational therapist and the client (Joss, ; Müllersdorf and Söderback, ; Rochman and Kennedy‐Spaien, ; Paquette, ; Innes et al, ). In all studies, the clients were involved in the intervention, and the occupational therapist had a supporting role.…”

Disability claims on psychiatric grounds in the South African context: A review

“…These may help to retain occupational capital, prevent unjustified vocational absenteeism, and contribute to a higher standard of practice. 37 Many patients in South Africa with common psychiatric disorders are on medication and some also receive psychotherapeutic intervention. Psychiatrists should also consider the potential benefits of a supervised and mentored work rehabilitation programme.…”

“…37 Although resources are limited and local health insurance benefits may be inadequate to cover the costs of ideal management, increased awareness of best practice should result in optimal utilisation of the available resources for retaining occupational capital in South Africa.…”

A framework for systematically improving occupational therapy expert opinions on work capacity

“…Occupational therapists provide a range of specific services including case management and/or on site supervision for people on return to work programs, on site job analysis, work/functional capacity evaluation, work hardening, work conditioning, vocational exploration, vocational retraining, and job placement (American Occupational Therapy Association, 2000; Deen, Gibson & Strong, 2000;Fenton, Gagnon & Pitts, 2003;Lo, 2000). Joss (2002) summarised that occupational therapists, through their education and professional development, are well trained to understand the relationship between an injured person's medical condition, functional abilities, psychosocial status and work demands. It is from this foundation in work-related practices that occupational therapists provide expert opinions on work capacity.…”