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OT's and Driving

Today in class we had a guest lecturer who is a driving rehabilitation specialist. He talked to us about the various diagnoses he sees, interventions and adaptations. It was a really cool class! We broke down just a few of the many components of driving and talked about how each diagnosis can alter/impair a persons driving capability. After the lecture we tried various assessments like the MoCA and SIMARD-MD on each other and went to look at the adaptive van he brought.

Listening to this guest speaker today made me realize that OT's can be very beneficial when helping to determine if someone is safe to drive. One intervention you could do would be getting a larger rear view mirror to help someone who had limited range of motion in their neck to be able to see in their blind spots. Another intervention could be going to a muscular dystrophy clinic or primary care office and offering an inservice so the staff could be more informed and know who to refer to.

Overall today was a very interesting class. While we may have just scratched the surface of how OT's can aid a person regain their independence through driving, I feel like we learned a lot.

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