Hey guys, I got back from my rural prac about two weeks ago, which I was lucky enough to do in India through the OT school. There were 10 students that went, myself, four OT’s, 3 speechies and 2 pharmacy students. We worked for about 4 and half weeks at an orphanage/institute for children and adults who had some form of disability or mental illness or may be developmentally normal but orphaned. It was an incredible experience and one I’ll never forget.
One thing I noticed whilst I was over there was how little knowledge both myself and the others had on what each other’s professions actually do. We always talk about working within a team and how important the multi-disciplinary team is. We do learn and experience this to a certain extent this year on prac, but as we all know every prac is different and some may get this experience more than others. It shocked me when one of the speech therapy students, for whom India was her final placement, expressed that she didn’t really know what physiotherapists did. I also realised that I didn’t really understand exactly what speech pathologists did, or the exact role that pharmacists play in the hospital. I felt like I had a bit better an understanding of OT, but even then whilst over there I learnt more about other areas they work in, for example working with children with autism and social interaction and sensory integration. My only interaction with SP this year has been on my neuro prac, so I thought they were all about swallowing, but they also do a lot of work in other areas, like social interaction, encouraging turn-taking and communication.
I realise now how important it is to know the exact role of each person within the multi-disciplinary team and how this really values the patient. The students I went to India with, including the pharmacy students now have a better idea of when it might be important to refer to a physio. One of the pharmacy students even made a comment that if someone with a certain condition comes into their pharmacy now they know that they can refer them to a physiotherapist. I am also much more aware now of the role of the other health professionals and am much more confident that I can recognise when i might need to involve the SP or OT or even the pharmacist in the treatment of a patient, which I feel will enhance the care the patients receive.
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Hey Bronwyn, great post! I couldn't agree more, a lot of health professionals don't understand the roles of other allied health team members, myself included. If we all knew each others roles better then surely this could only benefit our patients as we may pick up on things that others haven't, and refer onto the appropriate allied health area. I think its great that you educated others about our role, some people still think all we do is massage! grrr!!
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