Acute Care OT and PT After Birth

Maternal deaths are on the rise, here in the United States.

And, we have a postpartum mental health crisis.

In OT 90% of us are women, and many of us have personally experienced the inadequate support given to birthing individuals.

But, not enough of us have stepped back to ask: why aren’t we (with our training in mental health & daily participation) helping women in the hospital after birth?

Luckily, there is a growing number of OTs asking this question and doing something about it. And, my favorite part of this movement is that it is multidisciplinary—our PT colleagues are advocating for our services.

At the center of this movement are physical therapists, Drs. Jenna and Rebeca Segraves. They both worked on the commentary we are exploring today, and then will join us on the podcast to discuss the practical implications for your OT practice.

More Resources for OT in the Hospital after After Birth

• Amazing interview with therapists from a hospital system in VA: Why we offer OT and PT in the hospital after birth

• Pelvic Health Network

• Certified Perinatal Health Specialist

1. You will be able to identify specific postpartum assessments that OT professionals can utilize.

2. You will be able to identify specific treatment approaches that would benefit people after birth.

• Intro

• Breakdown and analysis of journal article

  • Intro

  • The Problems with Postpartum Care

  • What is Being Done?

  • How Other Conditions are Treated in Acute Care

  • The Call to Action

  • OT and PT’s role in Screening

  • OT and PT’s role in Obstetric Rehabilitation

  • The Interdisciplinary Team

  • Cost Justification for Services

  • Article Conclusion

  • Intro to Jenna and Rebeca Segraves

• Discussion on practical implications for OTs

  1. What Ignited Their Passion for OT & PT After Birth

  2. The Story of This Commentary

  3. Current Reactions to the Commentary

  4. Success Stories of Obstetric Rehab Services Being Initiated

  5. Assessment Consideration for OTs for After Birth

  6. Treatment Considerations for OTs for After Birth

  7. Sleep, Nutrition, and Stress Management Interventions

  8. Education Considerations for OTs for After Birth

  9. 3 Steps to Starting an Obstetric Rehab Program

  10. Goals for the Future of Obstetric Rehab

Primary

• Initiating Occupational and Physical Therapy in the Hospital After Birth: Access, Reimbursement, and Outcomes

Additional

• Scoping review of the role of occupational therapy in the treatment of women with postpartum depression

• Pelvic Floor Dysfunction After Childbirth: Occupational Impact and Awareness of Available Treatment

It is the policy of OT Potential to disclose any financial and non-financial interest the provider or instructor may have in a product or service mentioned during an activity. This is to ensure that the audience is made aware of any bias of the speaker.

OT Potential pays guest speakers an honorarium for their participation, either directly or to an institution of the speaker's choosing at their request. We invite guests whose expertise often comes from practices, programs, or building products in their field. Where a speaker has a financial interest in the subject of a course, we disclose it below so you can weigh it for yourself.

OT Potential's interest in this topic: We have no financial stake in this topic. Our Resources section links to the Certified Perinatal Health Specialist program, which our speakers founded; we receive no compensation for that link.

Speaker interests: Rebeca Segraves and Jenna Segraves are co-founders of Enhanced Recovery After Delivery (ERAD) and offer the Perinatal Health Specialist certification, a paid credential for occupational and physical therapists. Both are authors of the primary journal article explored in this course.

Jenna Segraves also co-created a paid continuing education course for acute care occupational and physical therapists working with the maternal and postpartum population.