Two jobs , two very different models of working
Newly qualified practitioner Tapiwa Majoni explores her personal perception of the advantages and disadvantages of working on an acute ward , in comparison with her current role on a complex long-term rehabilitation unit
Options for Care currently runs two locked rehabilitation hospitals and a community recovery home in the Birmingham area , for service users diagnosed with severe and enduring mental illness and long-term complex care needs .
It is a private company , but all service users are funded through the NHS commissioning body and continue to have contact with their community mental health team .
In 2015 , there was no occupational therapy service , only an activity worker who provided input into two hospitals supported by a sessional contracted occupational therapist who visited each unit one day a week .
To review provision , a clinical lead occupational therapist was recruited , and the occupational therapy team has been developed to its current establishment of one activity worker , an occupational therapy assistant , two occupational therapists and a senior occupational therapist , in addition to the clinical lead occupational therapist .
The decision was made that the occupational therapy staff would not be integrated into the daily staffing numbers , to ensure they could practise occupational therapy without any conflict to their time and duties .
This enabled the occupational therapy team to lead on the provision of the therapeutic planner , encompassing a range of group and individual sessions , set up and developed to meet the service users ’ needs .
When one of the occupational therapists , Tapiwa Majoni , discussed in supervision the differences she had experienced working in her previous role , when she was integrated into the numbers , in comparison with her current role , she was encouraged to complete a written reflection . This is Tapiwa ’ s perception of the different models of working :
My aim was to reflect on my experience of working within the integrated model of practice , working in the daily minimum staffing establishment , anecdotally referred to as ‘ nursing numbers ’, as a newly qualified occupational therapist .
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In my current post I focus on enabling individuals to re-engage in meaningful occupations through a variety of skill sets , such as skills development , establishing positive habits and routines and setting therapy goals .
I wanted to explore my perception of the advantages and disadvantages of working within the daily staffing numbers on an acute adult male ward and my current experiences on a complex long-term rehabilitation unit for men .
Working as an integrated member of the team involved shift working ( early and late shifts , but not nights ) over a seven-day working week . An occupational therapy care pathway had been established and promoted consistency across the acute wards . The Model of Human Occupation and its associated tools were used in practice to lead on prioritising and assessing patients on the ward . Each week , I had a period of protected time to focus on delivering occupational therapy-specific clinical work .
For the majority of the working week , I was working ‘ in the numbers ’ alongside nursing staff undertaking roles and tasks that would have traditionally been categorised as nursing care , for example co-ordinating and providing leadership to both nursing and occupational therapy staff during the shift , leading ward rounds and giving handovers .
Being a newly qualified occupational therapist , I did not have a senior occupational therapist to offer support and guidance . I drew on my occupational therapy skillset that I had acquired through my years of studying and adapted to the integrated model .
46 OTnews November 2021