Occupational therapy and 24-hour posture management
Occupational therapy and 24-hour posture management
Key messages:
- Postural support and equipment can enable people to participate in meaningful activities.
- Training in postural management and provision of equipment is important to support both care home staff and informal carers.
- Communication and skill sharing is needed to better support people with complex postural support needs. It would be beneficial for leaders and commissioners across Health and Social Care to clarify the roles and responsibilities of practitioners in postural management.
- Multidisciplinary and collaborative approaches such as working with physios can be most effective and reduce the risk of harm for people with complex needs. Preventative approaches such as early assessment are important – including considering a person’s daytime and nighttime support needs.
Reflective questions for leaders:
- What part can social care OTs play in early intervention and prevention to reduce the need for complex posture management interventions?
- Should social care OTs be working with care providers in private homes and care homes with a focus on posture management to enable access to meaningful occupations?
- What organisational support can you provide to ensure OTs feel confident and supported in their practice?
Reflective questions for practitioners:
- Are there people you support who would benefit from assessment of night-time sleeping posture as well as seating provision?
- What would help you feel more confident about assessing someone in both seating and lying postures?
- Have you provided seating or lying posture interventions? What might influence how acceptable these were to those using our services and their carers?
- What support might informal and formal carers need to implement the interventions OTs recommend?
