Because of the public health emergency, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services expanded access to telehealth services allowing patients to receive a wider range of services, including occupational therapy. But as the world continues to navigate the pandemic, practitioners across the nation are wondering what the future of telehealth looks like for them.   

Monica Wright, Manager, Coding and Payment Policy, shares what telehealth advocacy efforts AOTA has done on behalf of the profession. Also, Mary Jo McGuire, MS, OTR/L, OTPP, FAOTA, a community-based practitioner, and Lourdes Pinder, OTR/L, a school-based practitioner share how telehealth has impacted their day-to-day work. Learn more: https://www.aota.org/Practice/Manage/telehealth.aspx

Joy Doll leads us on a deep dive into the importance of Health Information Exchanges, Social Determinants of Health, and the role of OT in Primary Care and Telehealth 

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Dr. Caitlin Synovec and Julie Miller share their experience developing the "Application of the OTPF-4 to Support and Advance OT" short course and outline three case applications using the OTPF in person, group, and population interventions. 

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On today's episode we hear from Patty Laverdure, the program director of occupational therapy at Old Dominion University school of rehabilitation sciences and the Chairperson of the Special Interest Section Council (SISC) at AOTA. She shares her work and research in developing quality indicators for school-based practice, and details a systematic review on occupation and activity-based interventions to improve performance of activities of daily living, play and leisure for children and youth ages 5-21 which was published in the February issue of AJOT.

As the publishing arm of the AOTA, AOTA Press takes great pride in its publications. On the latest #AOTAPodcast episode, Amy Lynch, PhD, OTR/L, lead editor of the upcoming trauma book “Trauma, Occupation, and Participation: Foundations and Population Considerations in Occupational Therapy” shares why it’s critical for occupational therapy practitioners to fully understand how trauma affects the clients they serve. Visit store.aota.org for more information.

Today we introduce the final episode in our three-part Covid-19 case application series. We speak with Shelly Coleman Casto, the occupational therapy inpatient clinical lead and Jordan Walter an inpatient occupational therapist both at Nationwide Children’s hospital in Columbus Ohio. We discuss the importance of understanding how Covid-19 can impact children, how to approach implementing safe and specialized treatment for children with Covid-19, and outline a case application of the inpatient pediatric care process for children with Covid-19.  

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On episode two of our three-part Covid-19 case application series we speak with the lead clinician at USC’s Keck medical center, Jamie Wilcox. She shares how she and her colleagues consulted, used, and developed evidence-based approaches to address client care during the Covid-19 pandemic, and summarize a case study she co-authored outlining the process for providing occupational therapy services to a client with Covid-19 in the outpatient setting. 

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Additional resources discussed on this episode:

Managing long term effects of Covi-19 Rapid guideline: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng188

Today we introduce the first episode in our three-part series dedicated to outlining and expanding on the Covid-19 case applications published in the American Journal of Occupational Therapy. Since March 2020 Drs. Jamie Wilcox and John Margetis have been on the frontline of the Covid-19 pandemic caring for patients during and after hospitalization for acute Covid-19 related illness. On today’s episode we discuss their lived experience as OT practitioners in a critical care setting during the global pandemic, outline a case application of their approaches and interventions, and share recommendations and lessons learned for all practitioners.

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Additional resouces discussed on this episode:

https://www.improvelto.com/ 

A-F Bundle: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5351776/

Richmond Agitation and Sedation scalre: https://www.mnhospitals.org/Portals/0/Documents/ptsafety/LEAPT%20Delirium/RASS%20Sedation%20Assessment%20Tool.pdf

The Therapy Outcomes in Post-Acute Care Settings (TOPS) study commissioned by AOTA and APTA found that physical therapy and occupational therapy are connected to positive impacts on patients in post-acute care settings. Members of the study’s advisory committee Sharmila Sandu J.D., Natalie Leland, PhD, OTR/L, BCG, FAOTA, FGSA, and Tracy Mroz, PhD, OTR/L, share key findings and what implications these findings have for CMS’ ongoing implementation of post-acute care payment system reforms. Read more about the study here: https://www.aota.org/Advocacy-Policy/Federal-Reg-Affairs/Therapy-Outcomes-Post-Acute-Settings.aspx

On today’s episode we speak with the chair of occupational therapy at Ithaca college and the chair of AOTA’s Commission on Practice, Dr. Julie Dorsey. We discuss the importance and process of developing the practice framework, review the updates and changes to the guiding document of our profession, and explore the OTPF 4th edition’s implications for everyday practice.

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Additional resources:

OTPF 4th edition: https://www.aota.org/Publications-News/AmericanJournalOfOccupationalTherapy/access-framework-domain-otpf-download.aspx

Exploring the OTPF CE course: https://www.aota.org/Education-Careers/Continuing-Education/AOTACE/CE-Articles/fourth-framework.aspx

Have additional questions about the OTPF? Contact [email protected]