Occupational Therapy News OTnews July 2019 | Page 15

ANNUAL CONFERENCE REPORT
Use quality improvement methods to
improve recruitment, delegates urged
In a session on leadership, Helen Lycett from
West London NHS Trust looked at some of the
challenges of recruiting and retaining occupational
therapists within London and her own trust.
Wth a 30 per cent vacancy rate, she said that
there are a number of key drivers in London, including
the extremely high housing costs, the abolishment of
bursaries, and the inherent job
competition within the capital city.
Speaking about her own
borough, she said: ‘Housing costs
Housing costs and
and rent are out of reach for most
rent are out of reach for
band five occupational therapists,
most band five occupational
meaning many people have to
therapists, meaning many
live out of the area and face long
commutes to work.’
people have to live out of the
‘‘
She added: ‘Our local cohort
area and face long
was only 50 per cent full for the
recruitment days.
commutes
to
work.
2017/18 year, which we will feel
In terms of retention, they implemented
the impact of in a few years, and
a band five and six AHP development
Helen Lycett
London is a busy place with a lot of
programme, to complement the existing
competition.’
preceptorship programme.
In 2018, the trust has a 28 per cent
The overall impact was that the trust achieved
vacancy rate – in line with that of the rest of the
its aim and after the nine-month period, had reduced the
city – and Helen knew that they had to ‘start thinking differently’.
vacancy rate from 28 per cent to a remarkable nine per cent.
With improvement adviser training under her belt, giving her
Her key message to others struggling with the same situation
experience of the Model for Improvement and PDSA (Plan, Do,
is that ‘no idea is a bad idea’, that staff should ‘ringfence time’
Study, Ask) cycles, Helen set out to reduce the trust’s vacancy
for quality improvement projects, and that ‘no one thing works in
rate to 10 per cent by March 2019.
isolation’.
Wth buy in from HR, they trialled using Google Ads to help
With that final point in mind, Helen says the trust is now looking
with recruitment – a tool that she says ‘was not that expensive’,
at how it can work more collaboratively across the system to start
alongside a number of other initiatives, including
to change things across London.
Do you know the driving status of all your clients? And if not, why not?
These were the direct questions posed by Sherrie Buckley, from
St Patrick’s Mental Health Services, in a session on the current
knowledge, perceptions, attitudes and practice of occupational
therapists in Northern Ireland when it comes to driving and
depression.
There are around 322 million people worldwide with
depression, she pointed out. Depression itself can impact on
driving ability, in terms of attention, for example, while medication
can have severe side effects and vehicular suicide ideation is often
under reported.
Her own research looked to investigate what Irish occupational
therapists are doing when it comes to looking at the issue of
driving and depression with their clients. It indicated that: around
30 per cent of respondents referred people to another profession;
35 per cent did provide some driving-related advice; six per cent
viewed assessment as only an issue for those with a physical/
cognitive disability; 28 per cent offered no advice or intervention;
and eight per cent said the role was better suited to occupational
therapists in physical disability not mental health.
She added that almost all respondents thought further
education and training was needed.
She said that rather then determining if somebody is fit to
drive, occupational therapists should be ‘starting to have the
conversation’ about fitness to drive.
‘Conversations are not really happening,’ she exclaimed. ‘Why
is driving overlooked? Occupational therapists should do this, but
we are not doing it, and when we do, we are inclined to refer to
others.’
She concluded: ‘We need to be more proactive in considering
driving. We need to know the driving status of the people we work
with and we need to start talking and offering advice, or another
profession will come along and start doing it for us.’
OTnews July 2019 15