Occupational therapy practitioners employ energy conservation work simplification techniques to assist their patients in limiting activity levels and decreasing fatigue. These principles include teaching them how to complete tasks efficiently as well as planning ahead or delegating tasks effectively.
Many respiratory patients rely on oxygen, and any physical exertion beyond what their oxygen level allows may lead to oxygen desaturation – an uncomfortable state characterized by fatigue and discoloration of skin. OTs teach respiratory patients how to pace themselves throughout their daily activities with rest breaks and pacing strategies.
Repetitive Use Injuries
RSIs (repetitive strain injuries) are musculoskeletal conditions caused by repetitive and forceful motions or awkward body postures, typically seen in repetitive activities and awkward body positions such as sitting. While they can affect any part of the body, most commonly they appear on back, neck, upper limbs and lower limbs of an employee and their ability to effectively perform work duties in the workplace.
Occupational therapy can assist those recovering from these conditions by meeting all their needs holistically and providing strategies for self-management, including using adaptive equipment, prioritizing tasks, and using cognitive compensatory techniques. This enables people to remain active while still living fulfilling lives despite health challenges they are currently facing.
Occupational therapists (OTs) assist their patients not only with physical limitations but also emotional challenges such as depression. Through personalized planning and support services, the individual OT helps elevate mood and quality of life while encouraging autonomy and satisfaction for maximum benefit.
Occupational Therapists also assist people living with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, typically found in legs and feet, by applying energy conservation and work simplification techniques that will minimize unnecessary exacerbations of this pain, such as 2-person transfers, mechanical lifts and scheduling transfers in advance. Furthermore, OTs offer safe body mechanics training that may prevent injuries as well as allow patients to continue performing their jobs safely.
Complex Regional Pain Syndrome
Complex Regional Pain Syndrome is a condition characterized by intense, persistent limb pain that often limits quality of life for its sufferers. Although this disorder can be debilitating, occupational therapists have strategies available that may help those living with this disorder overcome the challenges they face – these energy conservation work simplification techniques (ECTs).
ECTs can assist patients in managing pain and fatigue by identifying activities or physical intensities that aggravate it and then teaching them how to avoid those activities. They also assist with tailoring daily tasks to reduce energy-intensive movements as well as adapting environments or equipment accordingly, or assist with symptom management by offering mental or sensory exercises which enhance processing pain-provoking perceptual stimuli.
To successfully implement ECTs with patients who suffer from CRPS, occupational therapy practitioners need to first identify underlying physical, psychosocial, and emotional factors contributing to symptoms. From there they can use various treatments in combination to address all of these aspects and help their patient overcome challenges while remaining as independent as possible.
Respiratory Patients
Energy conservation strategies for respiratory patients focus on conserving oxygen for the brain, as oxygen depletion can result in pain, tingling sensations in extremities, discoloration of skin, nausea, dizziness and loss of consciousness. To combat these symptoms, occupational therapists provide education on how to pace activities throughout the day while taking breaks when necessary and eating healthily in order to promote energy. In some instances, pulse oximeters are recommended in order to monitor oxygen saturation levels more effectively.
Occupational Therapists use various energy conservation techniques to assist their patients in managing the fatigue associated with chronic diseases like COPD. This approach includes teaching clients to pace tasks and keep an energy logbook. Other techniques may include helping with home modifications or prescribing adaptive equipment.
Review of literature revealed that client-centered treatment delivery was preferred when it comes to energy conservation treatment, including providing guidelines and setting goals for clients as they strive toward them. Unfortunately, studies were less clear as to the optimal number and frequency of sessions and duration of therapy; thus we identified six most frequently employed delivery methods – planning and organisation, prioritization, activity analysis, balance between activities and rest, outsourcing tasks and physical/environmental adaptation as these were found most suitable methods of delivery.
Hospice Patients
As people age, fatigue and activity tolerance decreases significantly. Occupational Therapists (OTs) can utilize energy conservation techniques to assist their elderly patients adapting their environment more easily while performing tasks with reduced exertion – this may involve activity pacing, ergonomic modifications and prescribing assistive equipment to decrease manual effort.
Hospice care can be beneficial to terminally ill patients who are expected to live only a few months or less, including advanced cancer, malignant tumors, Parkinson’s disease dementia and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
Patients living with chronic illness can benefit from adopting work simplification techniques in their everyday lives, including using long-handled tools to minimize bending and reaching when dressing or bathing; using long-handled tools when dressing or bathing may reduce bending and reaching; they could sit while performing these tasks or utilize tub benches or shower chairs; occupational therapists could suggest outsourcing daily activities like housecleaning and grocery shopping, or attending community outings with companions.
Energy conservation-based treatment typically utilizes six primary delivery methods. These are guidelines and setting goals for patients, client-centered approach, balance between activity and rest, home modification/adaptive equipment installation/modification and physical/environmental adaptation. Although these approaches largely rely on general principles, individual approaches are necessary in order to reap maximum benefit from each strategy. Therefore, further research must explore regional differences in effectiveness; some regions possess distinct cultural traits which could affect implementation of such strategies.
Cardiac Patients
Energy Conservation Work Simplification Techniques occupational therapy seeks to empower patients in performing daily tasks in a manner which minimizes muscle fatigue, joint stress and pain. This may be achieved through teaching patients to pace themselves appropriately when engaging in activities and taking appropriate breaks between tasks; taking advantage of rest breaks when needed and delegating chores when possible to family, friends or hired helpers as appropriate.
Occupational therapy (OT) can be especially useful for cardiac patients, who typically follow strict physician orders regarding lifting (i.e. not lifting more than 5-10 lbs). Working closely with an OT to reassess home and work routines can help them stay within these guidelines while simultaneously decreasing fatigue levels and improving quality of life.
