Therapy Assistant programs - reflection

Think of a recent therapy session or event.

• I handed over a therapy program to a therapy assistant to complete with a patient.
• This involved written information on a specific therapy task and the goal for this task.
• I also verbally explained the task to the assistant and did a joint session with them and the patient.
• The therapy assistant completed the task with the patient but saw them for different time periods and a different number of sessions each week. I advised the assistant on how to step up the therapy task once the goal was achieved but they continued with the same task for several weeks.

What did this session make you feel?

• I feel that I did not give the assistant enough guidance on how to recognise when the therapy goal was achieved and on how they could step up the task/ what the long term goals for the patient were.
• I feel that I could have better explained the reason for the patient's impairments using a model.

What would you want to change and why?

• I would be clear about the patient's: long term goals, impairments, level of input desired, time period for review.

What has this session taught you?

• I need to plan therapy programs more carefully including more detailed information on goals, level of input and timeframes.

Action

Therapy Intervention Plan

- Level of input

- Handover process (1 - verbal handover with plan, 2- full handover joint session, 3 - TA independently implements therapy program and gives feedback)

- Goals

- Tasks + desired outcome

- Indirect tasks - e.g. creating therapy resources such as grids with communication items the aptient may need to communicate frequently (e.g. bed/move position/ feelings...)

- review date