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Preparing students to use telehealth, which can help extend occupational therapy services at a time when a shortage of health care workers or distance from a specialized therapist may affect access to services.
It doesn't take a crystal ball to foresee that health care in the United States will continue to undergo change and influence how we deliver occupational therapy to our clients. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act places new emphasis on the need for team-based care that is client centered, efficient, and cost effective (Mitchell et al., 2012). Team-based care holds great promise for providing clients with diverse knowledge, yet it is conversely associated with avoidable adverse events and unnecessary costs that can result from poor communication (Olsen & Young, 2010). One technique suggested by the Institute of Medicine for improving teamased care is to struct students in professional programs in principles of team process through interprofessional educational (IPE) experiences (Mitchell et al., 2012). IPE is simply "occasions when [students] from two or more professions learn about, from, and with each other to enable effective collaboration and improve health care outcomes" (World Health Organization, 2010, p. 10). Students overwhelmingly value the experience of learning about other professionals as well as understanding when other disciplines can enhance health care delivery for their patients. Recommendations for team delivery of health care are a part of new models of service delivery that extend occupational therapy services at a time when a shortage of health care providers or distance from a specialized practitioner could affect access to occupational therapy (Cason, 2012). One new model that addresses these challenges is telehealth. AOTA defines telehealth as "the application of evaluative, consultative, preventative, and therapeutic services delivered through telecommunication and information technologies" (American Occupational Therapy Association, 2013, p. S69). Current applications in occupational therapy include modifying environments for improved occupational performance, developing new skills through rehabilitation or habilitation, and teaching clients how to create more positive habits and routines across all practice areas of occupational therapy (Cason, 2012). Occupational therapy practitioners are using telehealth to overcome local service delivery challenges, such as a lack of specialized practitioners, and a pressing need for occupational therapy in rural areas. Given our statewide rural workforce shortages and the emerging use of...