Occupational Therapy News OTnews January 2019 | Page 51

2018
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
January/February 2018
Embracing risk; enabling cho
ice
Guidance for occupational therap
ists
Royal College of Occupa
tional Therapists
We published a new risk guidance report, Embracing risk: Enabling choice and the
follow-up report Reducing pressure in hospitals 12 months on. Both reports support
our ongoing work in promoting occupational therapy in relieving pressure in
acute care and a person-centred approach to providing care, away from over-
medicalised models.
From this month and throughout the year, our library began the publication of
new hOT topics – cardiac rehabilitation, chronic fatigue syndrome and myalgic
encephalomyelitis, adult learning and practice placement education. These new
topics align with the Career Development Framework, and include CPD activities.
March 2018
Prisons:
The value of
occupational
therapy
We saw a lot of activity this month, with the publication of the Improving Lives, Saving
Money short report Prisons: The value of occupational therapy.
We launched a new ejournal, Leadership in health services, to support members’ CPD
in the areas of strategic management, improving patient care and services, personal
leadership, mentoring and coaching. The ejournal provides peer-reviewed research
articles framing leadership specifically in the context of the healthcare system, and also
includes case studies analysing best practice solutions.
We completed a review of the RCOT annual awards process. As a result of this work,
the awards were aligned with the Career Development Framework, we established
new awards, and we increased the funding on offer to support members’ learning,
development and research activities.
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This month our Patron HRH the Princess Royal visited West Suffolk Hospital, in Bury St Edmunds, where occupational
therapists work across health and social care services. She heard how occupational therapists work as part of a large
multidisciplinary team offering integrated working across acute and social settings, and their important role in getting
people home safely, as well as in the community to minimise hospital admissions.
April 2018
This month Keith Willetts, Director of Emergency Care and Preparedness (NHS England), visited the Falls Response
Service at East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust as a result of the Improving Lives, Saving Money campaign – he said he
would use the service as his service exemplar for the next year.
May 2018
This was a very busy month for RCOT. We launched our new Strategic Intentions for 2018-2023 at a high-profile
event in London, attended by HRH the Princess Royal. The event was held at Fishmongers’ Hall, and was attended
by a variety of guests, including RCOT staff, specialist section and regional committee members, allied health
professionals, stakeholders, supporters and partners, as well as members from across the UK.
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