Occupational Therapy Out-patient service

The Occupational Therapy service offers a supported discharge and outpatient service for patients suffering from a range of neurological conditions such as acquired brain injury, stroke, neurodegenerative disorders, Multiple Sclerosis, neuromuscular disorders.

The supported discharge service

The supported discharge service is aimed particularly at patients who have been receiving in-patient intervention and would benefit from this service to ensure a smooth and safe transition from hospital to home.

The patient will be assessed by a therapist whilst an in-patient and an individual home rehabilitation programme, focused on client centred goals will be provided and implemented.

The therapist will support patient discharge through the use of a problem solving approach involving cognitive and physical strategies and through liaising with and supporting carers in coping strategies, facilitating a return to an appropriate level of independence in activities of daily living.

Out-patient service

The Occupational Therapy out-patient service will accept referrals for patients who have:

• Previously required in-patient treatment but feel there level of functioning has reduced.
• Continuation of rehabilitation following discharge from hospital
• Patients with long standing conditions reducing quality of life.
• Specific assessment needs i.e. Standardised cognitive assessment, driver's screening assessment, return to work program.

The out-patient service provides assessments and treatments for patients with physical and/or cognitive impairments to facilitate return to appropriate level of independence in activities of daily living selected by the patient/carer, through the use of client centered goals and individual intervention programmes. The therapist will provide, were appropriate, advice on specialist equipment and altering the environment to suit the individual needs. The therapy out-patient service facilitates a patient's return to gainful occupation in their previous role whenever possible, or guiding/assisting the individual to find a new role, more appropriate to their level of impairment.

The therapist will assist the patient in identifying their functional impairments, providing work based advice and intervention programmes, assisting to devising return to work plans and liaising with neuro-psychology, employers, access to work and job centre plus advisers etc. to inform and empower the individual with regards to returning to work.

The therapy outpatient service offers targeted cognitive and perceptual assessments to measure cognition in patients who have a neurological injury or disease.

Assessments of cognitive functions essential for safe driving can be undertaken, this is the perceptual analysis of the visual world, praxis skills to move a car in space and executive function to act appropriately to on-road traffic. Performance on the assessment gives a good indication of individual cognitive fitness to drive and help decide whether an on-road test is appropriate.