This month’s shout-out goes to Rebecca Sandy, Lead Clinical Specialist Occupational Therapist (OT) who is on secondment with Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service from Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust. Rebecca has worked with partners across fire services to develop a new and innovative national CPD resource to reduce the risk of accidental fires in the home.
The resource Rebecca has developed is available as a presentation and workbook that can be used by an individual or as part of a team. It highlights key areas where OTs can incorporate fire prevention in their practice, including enhanced assessment of cooking safety, risk enablement with ‘safer’ smoking (where the person does not want to quit smoking), safer access arrangements, and education and advice for families and carers. The resource is designed to increase the confidence of OTs with addressing fire safety and developing closer partnership links with the Fire and Rescue Services.
Rebecca said, “Occupational Therapists have an important opportunity to identify and reduce fire safety risks within our community. We are already working with patients who face a higher likelihood of being affected by accidental home fires, and we can play an important role in helping them and their families and carers to create a safer environment.”
Rebecca’s role with the fire service includes providing specialist assessments and interventions to those at the highest risk of having an accidental fire in their homes, as well as embedding an understanding of health, client-centredness and positive risk-taking within the Prevention team in the fire service.
The new fire safety resource is available to be downloaded from the Royal College of Occupational Therapists website by members of the organisation.