Week 5 – OT at Mercy

For Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday I shadowed an occupational therapist at Mercy hospital. I have been in trauma and surgery. On this floor patients are preparing for surgery or recovery from a traumatic accident. Examples of a traumatic accident are severe car accidents, being hit by a car, falling from a big hight, ect. Most patients in That I visited had broken backs, hips, or more than 5 different broken bones. Occupational Therapy is helping to redevelop the skills for things you do throughout your everyday life. For example eating, walking, brushing your teeth, showering, going to the bathroom and getting dressed. So far I have learned about how simple tasks like scrunching up a tissue can help redevelop muscle strength throughout your arm. I have also been learning a lot about devices used in order to help move patients who don’t have the ability to stand or walk by themselves. I have also learned a lot about charting and documenting the progress of a patient.