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- Title
Who's next? Referral prioritisation criteria for home care occupational therapy.
- Authors
Raymond, Marie-Hélène; Feldman, Debbie; Prud¿homme, Marie-Pier; Demers, Louise
- Abstract
Background/aims: Prioritising referrals on waiting lists is common practice in rehabilitation. However, little is known about the exact criteria that are used in home-based occupational therapy to determine the level of urgency. This study aimed to identify prioritisation criteria in home-based occupational therapy services in Quebec, Canada, and to describe how they are used in practice. Methods: A mail and telephone survey of 55 home care programmes across Quebec was conducted. Participants provided information about occupational therapy wait times, and referral prioritisation tools and practices. A detailed quantitative content analysis compared the content of all referral prioritisation tools. Results: This study identified 48 main categories of referral prioritisation criteria, but only nine of them were present in the majority of tools. Wait times vary greatly between priority levels, with a median of 2 days for urgent referrals and 20 months for low-priority referrals. In general, problems related to safety and remaining at home are considered more urgent than problems related to independence, quality of life, and activities outside the home. Conclusions: These findings highlight the need for more consistent and evidence-based prioritisation criteria for occupational therapy in home care in order to facilitate equitable access to these services.
- Publication
International Journal of Therapy & Rehabilitation, 2013, Vol 20, Issue 12, p580
- ISSN
1741-1645
- Publication type
Journal Article