Occupational Therapy Involvement in Health Reform in Ireland

The Health Service Executive (HSE) is the primary funder / provider and of health and social care services in Ireland. Historically service provision has been fragmented and underfunded. Significant Health Service Reform has... [ view full abstract ]

The Health Service Executive (HSE) is the primary funder / provider and of health and social care services in Ireland. Historically service provision has been fragmented and underfunded. Significant Health Service Reform has occurred within recent years with the establishment of 33 National Clinical Programmes to bring together clinical disciplines to improve and standardise patient care, to enable them to share innovative solutions, and to deliver greater benefits for service users.

Clinicians have identified gaps, defined models of care, implemented best practice and sought funding for improvement initiatives.

The Association of Occupational Therapists (AOTI) of Ireland has been actively involved with this reform through a partnership model with all six Therapy Professions.

Several Occupational Therapists represent the six therapy professions in several programmes; including Older People, Palliative, Critical Care, Stroke, Acute Medicine, Rehabilitation and Neurology.

To date many improvements have occurred as a result of the programmes which have had a positive impact the occupational therapy profession; such as defining a need for our inclusion in Stroke and Critical Care Units and in Frail Elderly Programmes. Therapy Led Clinics in Trauma and Orthopaedics and Neurology are also promoted.

As the Therapy Co - Lead for the Neurology Programme, the author of AOTI submissions to several programmes, one of three managers which reviewed all documents from all programmes, and the negotiator on several documents in ensuring that occupational therapy received prominent inclusion, I would welcome this opportunity to share my experience in being involved with health reform on a national scale.