Making great occupational therapy referrals

Good quality referrals are key to helping children and young people access the occupational therapy they need – when they need it.

Making great occupational therapy referrals

Good quality referrals are key to helping children and young people access the occupational therapy they need – when they need it.

They also help us use resources efficiently by putting services and support where they are needed most.

Good quality referrals mean:

A young person’s needs can be assessed and prioritised easily.
We can identify the level and type of OT a young person needs – first time.
There's a shared understanding of the purpose and expectations of OT involvement.
Relevant information is shared, helping children and young people to move smoothly from one service to another.
OT resources are used efficiently, and the risk of unnecessary delays or duplication of effort is minimized.

Top tips for referrers

First, check if a referral is needed for the difficulties you’ve identified.
Some occupational therapy services have a useful website, offer a telephone advice line or can be contacted directly in other ways.
This support may be appropriate – meaning parents/carers, teachers and others can get advice straight away without children and young people needing a referral or waiting to be seen.
When a more individualised approach is required, the following tips will help you make good referrals so children and young people can access the right occupational therapy, first time.

Example scenarios

Activity or routine causing a problem

Describe the activities or routines that are causing a problem at home, at school or nursery or elsewhere:

Chloe is arriving at school in a high state of anxiety, unable to settle and learn
Raman complains of pain in his hands and is becoming frustrated because he can’t write enough in lessons
Joseph has difficulty using a knife and fork and is embarrassed to eat outside the family home.

What would the individual like to do?

Explain what the child or young person would like to be able to do, or what you’d like them to be able to do:

we’d like Chloe to be able to take part in learning and social activities alongside her peers at school
Raman would like to produce written work that reflects his ability and doesn’t cause him pain
Joseph would like to have the confidence to use cutlery when eating Sunday dinner with his grandparents.

Strategies/approaches already tested

Describe the strategies or approaches that have been tried already:

Chloe’s parents have attended a sensory needs workshop which they found helpful, but they’d like some support to help her at school
Raman has tried various pencil grips and handwriting programmes, but is still struggling to produce enough writing in lessons without causing too much pain
when eating out Joseph tends to choose finger food such as pizza or burgers, but this strategy doesn’t work for roast dinners.

Referring to the right service

Make sure you are referring to the right service and follow the correct process:

Check you have identified the service that can address the needs you’ve prioritised.
Make sure the person you’re referring meets the referral criteria. For example, age, address and GP registration.
Ensure parents/carers agree to the referral and understand it’s purpose.
Provide all relevant paperwork and supporting information.

What to focus on

We’ll use our expert OT knowledge to identify approaches to achieve those goals. There are many reasons why someone may be struggling to carry out daily life activities – and if we only focus on one area, you may not benefit from the range of skills and expertise that occupational therapists offer.

Top tips for OT services

Good quality referrals are key to the efficient and effective use of OT resources. They help us understand where services and support should be positioned to have the most impact on individuals and communities.

Good referrals reduce the unnecessary administration and frustration – for OTs, referrers and families – of chasing missing information or redirecting people to a more appropriate service.

They ensure a positive parent/carer experience by promoting a shared understanding of the purpose and expectations of OT.

Whilst we can’t offer advice for individual services, the following general tips will help you understand the need for OT in your area and create a referral system that ensures children, young people and families can access the level and type of OT they need, first time.

Prioritise occupation. Ask about the daily activities, roles and routines that the child or young person is struggling with and what they’d like to be able to do. This will set expectations about the areas that occupational therapists are interested in and how we can help.

Ask about support, strategies or approaches that have been tried already. This will help you identify interventions/approaches that might help, and those you can rule out.

Establish a robust triage system. This will help you identify the level and type of support to help meet an individual’s OT needs.

Review service referrals regularly and systematically. Consider:

Has there been a change in demand? If so, what could explain this? Do you need to reposition resources to meet new or emerging needs?
Reasons for referrals – are there any common themes? Is your service addressing these or should you/could you adapt your offer to meet these needs?
Referrers – are you receiving lots of referrals from the same source (for example, a school)? Would some support or education help facilitate better referrals? Or could you redirect OT resources to address an emerging need in a particular area?
Populations – are some groups more likely to be referred than others? Are some people missing, and if so, how can you reach them?

Want to know more? See the self-directed group learning resource ‘OT with children: right intervention, right time, right place’ for more ideas about using referral data to align your service offer with the needs of your community.

Learning in Groups - RCOT