Occupational therapy in a Medicare-approved home health agency.

The clinical and professional considerations of the occupational therapist in a Medicare-approved home health agency are discussed. These considerations include the effect of Medicare regulations on occupational therapy screening, evaluation, treatment, and discharge. An occupational therapy chart review was conducted to determine the diagnoses of patients, the duration of treatment, and the outcome of interventions. The results show that the majority of patients referred to an occupational therapist have more than one treatable diagnosis. The average duration of treatment is 7.25 visits per patient. The outcome of intervention shows that 79% of patients treated by occupational therapy were able to remain safely at home either independently or with assistance.