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Description
Enhancing Occupational Therapy in the Acute Care Setting: Educating Clinicians, Expanding Resources, and Strengthening Documentation
My doctoral capstone project was completed in the acute care setting at University of Kentucky HealthCare. The goal was to elevate occupational therapy’s role by addressing documentation practices, assessment use, and discharge planning. I focused on equipping clinicians with tools and education to improve service quality, efficiency, and OT visibility in discharge processes.
Through clinician interviews, workflow observations, and review of discharge trends, I identified challenges in documentation standardization, assessment clarity, and OT involvement in discharge planning. Literature supported these findings, highlighting how such issues reduce OT’s impact on patient outcomes.
In response, I developed three key deliverables using clinician input, workflow data, and evidence-based practices:
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OT Assessment Administration Guide: Details purpose, materials, time, scoring, interpretation, and examples for common assessments.
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Simulated ADL Guide & Quick Tips: Offers links and strategies for functional patient tasks in therapy sessions.
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Galveston Orientation and Amnesia Test (GOAT) Guide: Provides step-by-step administration, scoring, and interpretation of the GOAT.
These resources were shared in staff meetings with demonstrations and opportunities for feedback. Evaluation showed improved clarity in documentation and assessment use.
This project enhanced OT service delivery by supporting consistent documentation, expanding clinical tools, and reinforcing OT’s role in discharge planning. It fostered my leadership in evidence-based practice and process improvement, and the deliverables offer sustainable support for acute care teams and potential for broader application across healthcare settings.
Graduation Date
2025
Keywords
acute care, documentation, assessments, insurance, ADLs, simulation, discharge planning
Disciplines
Occupational Therapy
Degree Type
Open Access Capstone
Document Type
Poster
Degree Name
Doctor of Occupational Therapy (OTD)
Department
Occupational Therapy
Site Mentor
Mindy Eades, OTR/L
Comments
Link to the presentation video: https://youtu.be/jDzcpx2L9c4