The importance of rational policy analysis for occupational therapists
The OT Capital Briefing in the November 7, 2016 OT Practice analyzes two Supreme Court cases that are summarized together as follows:If the Supreme Court finds in favor of the families in both cases, the expertise occupational therapy practitioners provide will be more important than ever to ensure students with disabilities receive a meaningful education, and that schools fully comply with the ADA and Section 504.This is a confusing summary because neither case has anything to do with OT specifically and in fact if the Supreme Court finds in favor of the families there may be unintended consequences that are damaging.In t...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - November 8, 2016 Category: Occupational Health Tags: Disability rights OT practice school-based practice Source Type: blogs
The Case of Lena, Part III: George Barton's promise to help others who were in pain
The original book " The Counterpane Fairy " was written and illustratedby Katharine Pyle in 1898. It is a fanciful story of a fairy who visits children in their beds as long as they do not cry. The fairy brings some comfort to these children and has the ability to magically transport them away from their circumstances if they focus on one of the squares of their counterpanes (bedspreads).Occupational therapists may not be aware of how this story is relevant to the profession ' s history. This post will conclude the exploration of ' The Case of Lena ' and explain how Pyle ' s story influenced George Barton...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - October 1, 2016 Category: Occupational Health Tags: Barton history Source Type: blogs
Correcting the record: The relationship between Barton and Dunton
The 1992 article " Point of Departure: A Play About Founding the Profession " written by Robert Bing, has some notable inaccuracies that require correction. The article has incorrect dates, incorrect attributions, and factual errors. The article was written in a somewhat whimsical fashion in the form of a play. However, it is important for such a telling to correctly reflect the historical record. It is possible that poetic license, used in context of history, does a disservice to our proper understanding of events as they actually occurred.In an article relating to historical documentary methods, D...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - October 1, 2016 Category: Occupational Health Tags: Barton history Source Type: blogs
“ I know my pain doesn ’ t mean I ’ m damaging myself – but I still have pain ”
In the excitement of helping people understand more about pain neuroscience, which I truly do support, I think it’s useful to reflect a little on the history of this approach, and how it can influence the experience people have of their pain.
If we go right back to the origins of pain self management, in the groovy 1960’s and 1970’s – the first truly significant work in chronic pain self management came from Wilbert Fordyce (Fordyce, Fowler & Delateur, 1968). Bill Fordyce was a clinical psychologist working in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Washington, Seat...
Source: HealthSkills Weblog - September 25, 2016 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: adiemusfree Tags: Chronic pain Clinical reasoning Education/CME Pain conditions Science in practice acceptance biopsychosocial healthcare pain management Research Therapeutic approaches Source Type: blogs
The Fit to Drive Test for Dementia Patients
One of the most difficult problems we face as dementia caregivers is when and how to convince a person living with dementia that it is no longer safe for them to drive an automobile.As dementia progresses,a time will come when your loved one will no longer be able to drive safely. In most cases it is very difficult to get a person living with dementia to stop driving. Many of us have faced this problem.In the article below Carole Larkin describesa new paper test that can help determine whether it is safe for you loved one to continue to drive; and,the likelihood that they could pass a standard driving test.Coping with Deme...
Source: Alzheimer's Reading Room, The - September 22, 2016 Category: Neurology Tags: alzheimer's care alzheimer's driving caregiver excellence dementia care dementia driving driving alzheimer's driving dementia help alzheimer's memory care Source Type: blogs
The Case of Lena, Part II: Barton's response to'A Common Man '
Continued from Part I - Read here.This exploration of some of Barton ' s writing outside of professional journals is offered for additional context to assist readers in understanding his concerns and passions that related to the occupational therapy profession.+++The story of Lena got one reader of the Geneva Daily Times " all choked up. " This reader called himself " A Common Man " and wrote a letter to the editor on January 19, 1920 asking more about Lena ' s story:Now what I don ' t understand is this. It was too bad that Lena couldn ' t take that elegant job in the 5&10 and I guess the manager was sorry...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - September 20, 2016 Category: Occupational Health Tags: Barton history Source Type: blogs
The Case of Lena
History provides context for understanding. We are so far removed from the daily life struggles of 100 years ago and our own experiences are so very different that it is difficult for us to develop a clear understanding of why events unfolded the way that they did.Occupational therapy is a health related profession that was born from the crucible of American society and culture at the turn of the 20th century. As such, events from those times greatly influenced the thinking of our primary founders.George Edward Barton lived in Clifton Springs in Ontario County on the street behind the Clifton Springs Sani...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - September 2, 2016 Category: Occupational Health Tags: Barton history Source Type: blogs
Deep Dive Analysis of 2017 Proposed Physician Fee Schedule
As we previously covered, in July CMS released its annual proposed updates to the Physician Fee Schedule. There are a number of potentially important areas of this proposal to our readers, including a section on Open Payments. The proposed rule can be found here, along with its page on the Federal Register website. The “Proposed Physician Fee Schedule 2017 - Open Payments Section” can be downloaded here. Comments are due to CMS by 5 p.m. on September 6, 2016. When commenting, refer to file code CMS-1654-P. Comments may be submitted electronically at regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for "submitting a comment." B...
Source: Policy and Medicine - August 24, 2016 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
Time to throw in the towel on sensory processing assessment
Today ' s Wall Street Journal includesthe standard article in its Life/Health section on Sensory Processing Disorder that we are all accustomed to seeing published every six months or so.The general idea of these journalistic offerings includes the standard trope of expert occupational therapists who can identify a disorder that the medical community can ' t quite agree on. It also includes the standard ethical bombshell that occupational therapists can ' t bill insurance for this therapy and that the costs are $175 per session and are needed for 18 or 30 sessions, depending on who you ask. Maybe it depends on ...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - August 15, 2016 Category: Occupational Health Tags: evidence-based practice sensory integration Source Type: blogs
CMS Reports $42 Billion Saved in Medicare and Medicaid
On July 20, 2016, CMS released a report that showed investments that are made in program integrity activities – such as stamping out fraud and reducing and deterring other improper payments – pay off for taxpayers and beneficiaries alike. For Fiscal Years (FY) 2013 and 2014, every dollar that was invested in CMS' Medicare program integrity efforts saved $12.40 for the Medicare program. With savings per dollar like that, Medicare and Medicaid programs have saved billions of dollars in that two-year period alone.
The report highlights CMS' significant achievements in reducing potentially fr...
Source: Policy and Medicine - July 24, 2016 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs
How to damage OTA practice and diminish the OT profession in three easy steps.
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Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - July 21, 2016 Category: Occupational Health Tags: OT Education OT practice Source Type: blogs
Occupational therapists want the general systems funk
Specialization is an unfortunate by-product of expansive knowledge. It is challenging to remain abreast of developments in multiple fields and in the busy lives of modern day humans people come to rely on the comprehensive thinking of 'others' while they busy themselves with their specialized thinking.Few stop to consider whether or not those 'others' to whom great power is ceded for their comprehensive thinking are actually up to the task. Or, if they are up to the task, who is doing the checking to make sure that the use of said power is being delegated for the broader good?In particular, occupational therapy...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - July 14, 2016 Category: Occupational Health Tags: health insurance OT practice philosophy Source Type: blogs
Ambiguity and uncertainty
Humans vary in how comfortable we are with uncertainty or ambiguity: Tolerance of ambiguity is a construct discussed in cognitive and experimental research literature, and refers to the willingness to prefer black and white situations, where “there is an aversive reaction to ambiguous situations because the lack of information makes it difficult to assess risk and correctly make a decision. These situations are perceived as a threat and source of discomfort. Reactions to the perceived threat are stress, avoidance, delay, suppression, or denial” (Furnham & Marks, 2013, p. 718). Tolerance to uncertainty is ...
Source: HealthSkills Weblog - July 10, 2016 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: adiemusfree Tags: Assessment Clinical reasoning Coping strategies Pain Pain conditions Professional topics acceptance ambiguity healthcare pain management Research Therapeutic approaches treatment uncertainty Source Type: blogs
Sometimes the most logical thing to do is to stop being logical
An issue came up today that probably needs some discussion. A parent of a young child was worried about protecting the child's remaining kidney with a kidney guard. The doctor was not interested in supporting the request for the kidney guard, mostly based on evidence that there is no reason to believe that they are effective and also based on the fact that kidney injuries are quite rare. (Grinsell, et al, 2012).One particular recommendation regarding kidney protection by Psooy, 2009 reads as follows:Parents should try to keep things in perspective: If they are not going to restrict a child from an activi...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - June 9, 2016 Category: Occupational Health Tags: parenting Source Type: blogs
The demise of authentic makerspaces: From Dad's workbench to Angie's List
Makerspaces or hackerspaces are terms used to describe environments where people build or create with materials, to learn how to share resources and work together to make things. In their current iterations they are often found in libraries, schools, or even community centers and people are invited to come into the environment to work on individual or shared projects. Here is a picture of a modern makerspace:Occupational therapists are becoming more interested in makerspaces, perhaps based on a seemingly genetic interest in the concept of a constructed milieu where people can come together to develop skills.&nb...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - May 27, 2016 Category: Occupational Health Tags: history parenting Too much information Source Type: blogs
