INTERESTING
Recently, a patient who attends our hand therapy clinic had an unfortunate encounter with local law enforcement officials. The name of the patient as well as the municipality involved will remain nameless for the writing of this blog. Reportedly, the patient (who had a friend in the passenger seat) stopped at a local convenience store to buy a Gatorade on his way home from his therapy appointment. Upon returning to his car (which he rightfully owns), his friend informed him that the individual in the car parked in the adjacent spot had been intently staring over at the car. The hand therapy patient looked over at the gentleman in the car, did not recognize him and so proceeded to back out of his parking spot to head home. Immediately upon attempting to back up his vehicle, he was blocked by multiple (reportedly two) police vehicles. With their lights flashing and the patient's car blocked in, the officers demanded that the patient get out of his car and proceeded to interrogate him. He was asked where he was coming from, where he was going, as well as whose car he was driving. Add to the scene two additional cruisers, with lights flashing. To sum matters up without going into the extremely unfortunate details, the patient was accused of driving a stolen car as well as having a gun in the back seat.
The patient had suffered an injury which prevents him from being able to fully use his right hand. At his therapy session that day, his therapist issued him an adapted key grip which is commercially available. He was delighted because for the first time in 3 years, he was able to start his own car without the assistance of someone else. Apparently the individual, who was in the parked car next to the patients car, was an off duty Police Officer. He assumed that the car was stolen because he saw a screwdriver in the ignition, prompting him to call in a “stolen vehicle”. Upon being shown the adapted key grip, the officer insisted to the patient that this was a stripped key and insisted that our patients hand appeared to work fine. While the patient had to endure these accusations of falsifying a disability, another officer declared that there was a gun in the back seat of the patient’s car. After some convincing and actually retrieving the case, the officers realized that it was an electrical stimulation unit issued to the patient for pain management-exactly as he informed the officers previously.
Those who are fortunate enough to go through each day with the full use of two hands most definitely take the completion of even the smallest tasks for granted. The full functionality of our hands (dominant as well as non dominant) is not realized, until we lose the use of it. Consider some tasks we all perform daily…eating, hygiene and bathing, getting dressed and undressed, driving, carrying items we need throughout the day…the list is endless. Many daily use items are commercially available in adapted forms for one handed use. Items not commercially available are often adapted by an OT to meet a patient’s specific needs. Many items are retrofitted with longer or angled handles for easier reaching for self care as well as object retrieval. Often handles on common daily objects are built up or made wider with various materials to compensate for decreased grasp. A few examples of commercially available items are knives, nail clippers, cutting boards, adapted doorknobs, button aids, and reachers all designed to maximize function for those with physical limitations. There are even websites dedicated to adapting hunting and fishing equipment. The list is endless and as technology evolves, more options become available for those with limited physical abilities. As you have read, OT’s not only assist individuals in regaining their physical abilities to perform daily tasks but also take great pride in adapting environments and objects in the environment to maximize functional independence.
My intent is not to dwell on the unfortunate happenings of that day. When I heard this story, it made me realize the general lack of awareness within the community for what we as Occupational Therapists do, as well as the struggles individuals with disabilities (temporary or permanent) endure on a daily basis. I immediately thought about how this unfortunate incident is actually an opportunity for education regarding the role of Occupational Therapy and the tools therapists use in assisting individuals to regain their independence. The World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT) defines Occupational Therapy as “a client- centered health profession concerned with promoting health and well-being through occupation. The primary goal of occupational therapy is to enable people to participate in the activities of everyday life. Occupational therapists achieve this outcome by working with people and communities to enhance their ability to engage in the occupations they want to, need to, or are expected to do, or by modifying the occupation or the environment to better support their occupational engagement” (WFOT 2012). In occupational therapy, occupations refer to the everyday activities that people do as individuals, in families and with communities to occupy time and bring meaning and purpose to life. Occupations include things people need to, want to and are expected to do. So, next time you see someone performing a common task utilizing a unique technique or tool, ask them about it. Chances are, they’ve had some therapy, worked really hard at mastering the task they’re performing and would love to share the methods and tools of their independence with you!
