Occupational Therapy in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit

In recent years, the number of inpatient cardiovascular surgeries has significantly increased in hospitals around America. Occupational therapists in the intensive care unit (ICU) at Mills-Peninsula Medical Center (Burlingame, California) lack a standard protocol for addressing physical, cognitive, and psychosocial factors in post cardiac surgery patients. Furthermore, interventions are frequently guided by professional experience and clinical reasoning instead of the most current evidence. The American Occupational Therapy Association’s Centennial Vision stated that “...occupational therapy is a powerful, widely recognized, science-driven, and evidence-based profession with a globally connected and diverse workforce meeting society’s occupational needs,” (American Occupational Therapy Association, 2006, p. 1). In response to this Vision, an evidence-based clinical pathway will be developed for the occupational therapists at Mills-Peninsula Medical Center. The clinical pathway will facilitate patients’ return to their highest level of function during post cardiac surgery rehabilitation. The proposed multifactorial approach will include physical recovery, early detection of cognitive impairment, and psychosocial health in post cardiac surgery patients. The proposed evidence-based clinical pathway will be presented to Ms. Jamie Thompson, the lead occupational therapist of the ICU at Mills-Peninsula Medical Center, who will assess the appropriateness and feasibility of the clinical pathway. The feedback obtained will then be incorporated into the final clinical pathway, which will be presented to the occupational therapists at Mills-Peninsula Medical Center in October, 2016