Date Presented 04/03/2025
The OT Practice Framework (4th ed.; OTPF-4) facilitates occupation-based practice, but it is often not fully embraced by OT practitioners. A quality improvement process was used to educate OT practitioners and increase use in practice.
Primary Author and Speaker: Anne Borema
Contributing Authors: Bridget Trivinia, Erin L. Mathia, Delaney McDonnell, Angela Caldwell
PURPOSE: The Occupational Therapy Practice Framework-4th Edition (OTPF-IV) is a guiding document to occupational therapy practice, however, it is unclear if it’s being utilized fully. Depending on time of academic education, occupational therapy practitioners (OTPs) may/may not have learned an edition of the OTPF and OTP knowledge and perspectives on the OTPF-IV are not fully understood. The purpose of the current study was to identify utilization of the OTPF-IV by OTPs in a pediatric medical model.
DESIGN: A quality improvement (QI) process with a convenience sample of OTPs was used. Data from OTPs with all levels of experience within inpatient rehab, acute, and outpatient service lines were included.
METHOD: An OTPF committee was formed to engage innovators/early adopters to facilitate use of OTPF-IV in the department. A continuing education course (CEC) was developed and offered to OTPs to provide baseline knowledge of OTPF-IV. Focus groups were conducted among all service lines and themes were derived.
RESULTS: 32 OTPs completed the CEC with 17 reporting lack of confidence with OPTF-IV pre-CEC. Confidence scores post-CEC increased on average 17.56 points. 50 OTPs participated in the focus groups with 5 themes achieving saturation: how OTPs use the OTPF-IV, barriers to use, enhancing documentation, need for measurement tools, preferred learning contexts. Results indicate a CEC was effective at increasing confidence with using the OTPF-IV and that documentation set-up and education of OTPF-IV are known barriers to its use.
CONCLUSION: OTPs use components of the OTPF-IV as a client-centered tool. Comprehensive use of the document is impacted by OTP knowledge, confidence, and documentation set-up.
IMPACT STATEMENT: Data indicates many OTPs are not using the OTPF-IV to its fullest. Education and engagement of practitioners in QI initiatives are effective methods to prioritize/plan implementation of OTPF-IV into practice.
References
AOTA. (2020). Occupational Therapy Practice Framework: Domain and Process—Fourth Edition. Am J Occup Ther August 2020, Vol. 74(Supplement_2), 7412410010p1 7412410010p87. https://doi.org/10.5014/ajot.2020.74S2001
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