Media Project: "O-Tee" Peg Board for Harris

        I truly enjoyed the process of constructing an OT intervention with my assigned material for this media project. It definitely challenged me to think like an occupational therapist and to apply all of the knowledge that I've learned thus far in Neurological Aspects (as well as Foundations). My client was Harris, who has a complete SCI injury at T3 and a fractured tibia, fibula, radius, and ulna on his right upper extremity as a result of an auto accident. His right arm is in a full arm cast, therefore his fingers are swelling at all joints in that hand. Harris also has difficulty sitting upright without the assistance of lateral supports in his wheelchair that he now uses. My assigned object was an ice cube tray, and I decided to make a peg board out of the tray, floral foam, and golf tees/balls since Harris loves playing golf. Through reaching over to grab the tees and balls and placing them in their designates spots, Harris will maintain ROM and strength in his fingers and shoulder while also building trunk strength and stability through independently sitting upright while completing the activity. By working on these skills, Harris will be able to return back to work, school, and golf once he is discharged from the rehabilitation hospital. His increased trunk strength and stability will also help increase his independence in performing ADLs.
           The most meaningful thing I learned during this assignment was how to look at a client's occupations, diagnosis, barriers, and goals and develop a client-centered OT intervention according to those aspects of his/her life. It required lots of creative thinking and problem solving due to the fact that I had to use an ice cube tray. I would say my "ah-ha!" moment was when I was trying to think of a way to decrease the edema in his fingers and later figured out that I could use the golf tees and balls to increase/maintain his finger movement and grip strength. I knew that these materials would form a client-centered activity due to the fact that Harris loves to golf and wants to get back to it once he leaves the hospital, so I was confident that I should stick to this way of thinking. I can say that the main thing that I have learned/accomplished through doing this project is how to write goals for the client by thinking about what he will be improving through the activity and how those improvements relate to his functioning in his daily life. I really struggled with writing the goals and making sure they were measurable, functional, client-centered, and realistic, but through some trial-and-error, I was able to write two solid goals. I believe that this assignment has done a lot to prepare me for clinical experiences in the future. It has definitely made me apply all of my knowledge that I've gained in OT school up to this point and apply it to a client's scenario. It has given me a confidence that I can be creative and am able to brainstorm ways to develop an effective, client-centered intervention with the limited resources I am presented with. This is a very low-tech activity, but I feel that it is functional and that my client would enjoy doing it while in the hospital since he loves golf and wants to get stronger with each day. I believe that I will be able to formulate effective and low-cost interventions for my clients in the future with help from the knowledge that I have gained from this project.