A process for developing sustainable evidence-based occupational therapy practice.

Area of Science:

• Occupational therapy practice and service delivery.
• Healthcare quality improvement methodologies.
• Professional development and sustained practice change.

Background:

• Sustaining practice improvement initiatives in healthcare is challenging.
• Occupational therapy models provide frameworks for practice but their long-term application requires study.
• Understanding the evolution of improvement work is crucial for long-term success.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the evolution of long-term improvement work in an occupational therapy unit.
• To examine how the Occupational Therapy Intervention Process Model (OTIPM) guided this improvement work.
• To identify factors contributing to the sustainability of practice changes.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative descriptive study design.
• Analysis of 435 pages of written documents from 2001-2013.
• Pattern matching technique used for data analysis.

Main Results:

• Three main patterns emerged: reorientation to OTIPM, implementation establishment, and sustainability assurance.
• Improvement work involved distinct phases driven by various factors, leading to long-term achievements.
• Smooth transitions between phases facilitated continuous improvement over the years.

Conclusions:

• The Occupational Therapy Intervention Process Model (OTIPM) can effectively guide and sustain long-term practice improvement.
• Sustained application of a practice model supports enduring enhancements in occupational therapy services.
• This study highlights the value of structured models in achieving lasting quality improvements.