The OT Equal Access Clinic made enormous strides during the fall 2021 semester, managing on-site and telehealth services simultaneously. The beauty of the on-site clinic reopening was being able to witness carryover of skills from the telehealth clinic. Second year students collaborated with a supervising clinician to treat a range of diagnoses including TBI, stroke, dementia, carpal tunnel syndrome, wrist tendinitis, and ankle and plantar pain.
Student volunteers were responsible for conducting a thorough chart review of the client(s) and attending a treatment planning meeting a few days prior to their assigned clinic night. Treatment planning required the students to analyze the client’s goals, current level of function, and interests while also using their existing knowledge in conjunction with evidence-based best-practices to create interventions for the session. Fourth year students brought their knowledge from level II fieldwork rotations to assist with complex cases as needed.
Experience with treating clients via telehealth aided in our ability to incorporate Zoom into our on-site sessions in order to include student volunteers while adhering to COVID guidelines for social distancing. This unique hybrid blend allows us to conduct hands-on evaluations and interventions while utilizing our virtual volunteers to take notes and research to provide instant resources about adaptive equipment, stretches, exercises, etc. so the client can see examples of what we are discussing or recommending.
Through telehealth, the OT EAC was able to provide services to clients who would otherwise be unable to receive treatment due to transportation and scheduling difficulties and provided the unique opportunity to assess clients’ function within their typical home context. Students were challenged to create flexible, individualized interventions using the client’s own items rather than supplies housed in the clinic. Examples of this individualization included squeezing a pair of the client’s socks as a preparatory activity for proprioceptive input or using a bowl for stretching out a contracted hand.
In the future, the clinic will be completing initial evaluations and home assessments via telehealth as well as continue to perform treatment sessions with clients who cannot travel to the clinic or have needs that may be better addressed in this format. This model will allow students the opportunity to assess the client in a familiar context, determine a more holistic approach to therapy, and create a process that identifies client needs and the best delivery of therapeutic services.
Overall, running telehealth services in addition to on-site services has given the clinic the opportunity to embrace our value of being dynamic by meeting the needs of our clientele and in our clinic operations. We plan to continue this model in the future to provide high quality and equitable services to our community as efficiently and effectively as possible.
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