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Evaluating a novel extended scope of occupational therapy service aimed at hospital avoidance in Tasmania, Australia, from the perspective of stakeholders
Citation
Van Dam, PJ and Reid, L and Elliott, S and Dwyer, M, Evaluating a novel extended scope of occupational therapy service aimed at hospital avoidance in Tasmania, Australia, from the perspective of stakeholders, Healthcare, 10, (5) Article 842. ISSN 2227-9032 (2022) [Refereed Article]
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Copyright Statement
Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
DOI: doi:10.3390/healthcare10050842
Abstract
The Australian state of Tasmania has seen a spike in Emergency Department presentations in recent years, particularly among the elderly. A novel extended scope occupational therapy (ESOT) service was implemented by the Tasmanian Health Service, aimed at supporting hospital avoidance. Clients were referred to the ESOT service by other services after being assessed as having a high risk of imminent hospital presentation. Occupational Therapists provided short-term interventions related to falls, mobility, nutrition, and initiated onward referrals to other services. A convergent parallel mixed methods design was used to evaluate the ESOT service. Quantitative data from routinely collected administrative records and a purpose-built survey of referring clinicians were used alongside qualitative data from semi-structured interviews with clients/carers, to enable the triangulation of data. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics, while qualitative data collected in interviews were thematically analysed. A total of 104 extended scope interventions were provided to 100 clients. Most clients were able to stay at home. Qualitative data revealed that mobility, support, and facilitating access to support services were factors which added value to the client and carer experience. In conclusion, the ESOT program contributed to potentially avoiding hospital admissions and to improving the quality of life of participating clients.
Item Details
| Item Type: | Refereed Article |
|---|---|
| Keywords: | hospital avoidance, occupational therapy, environmental assessment |
| Research Division: | Health Sciences |
| Research Group: | Health services and systems |
| Research Field: | Implementation science and evaluation |
| Objective Division: | Health |
| Objective Group: | Evaluation of health and support services |
| Objective Field: | Health system performance (incl. effectiveness of programs) |
| UTAS Author: | Van Dam, PJ (Dr Pieter Van Dam) |
| UTAS Author: | Dwyer, M (Dr Mitchell Dwyer) |
| ID Code: | 149965 |
| Year Published: | 2022 |
| Deposited By: | Nursing |
| Deposited On: | 2022-05-04 |
| Last Modified: | 2022-12-06 |
| Downloads: | 3 View Download Statistics |
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