Title: Compensatory Strategies for Patients with Spinal Cord Injuries | myotspot.com
Headings: Compensatory Strategies for Patients with Spinal Cord Injuries
Compensatory Strategies for Patients with Spinal Cord Injuries
Compensatory Strategies
Dressing
Self-Feeding
Bathing
Toileting
Grooming and Hygiene
Functional Mobility and Transfers
Driving
References and Additional Resources

Content: _______________
When you begin working with a patient with spinal cord injury for the first time, there are 3 factors to consider: The level of the injury
Whether the injury complete or incomplete
When the injury occurred
The level of the injury in conjunction with complete/partial severance of the spinal cord determines the types of effects (sensory and motor impairments) and severity of deficits (partial or full paralysis). Furthermore, the level + complete/partial assessment helps the medical team make predictions about likely improvement and/or plateaus. http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org
Compensatory Strategies
When plateaus in function occur, occupational therapists can introduce compensatory strategies rather than restoration of bodily functions. Identifying the time of initial injury will shape the OT’s application and necessity for compensatory strategies. If a middle-aged man sustained a T2 level SCI 15 years ago, he may already know all of the tricks in the book to maintain participation in daily living tasks and just might roll his eyes if the therapist hands him one more reacher. A patient who recently sustained an SCI may be at a complete loss with how to even generally approach life with limited mobility. In such cases, the occupational therapist can introduce all sorts of adaptations. The following ADL/IADL compensatory strategies are commonly used with SCI patients. Compensation could either be introducing a piece of durable medical equipment, a piece of adaptive equipment, or a change in intact/voluntary movement.