Therapy team delivers innovative ‘Think Therapy’ training 

Therapy teams from University Hospitals Dorset have launched an innovative ‘Think Therapy’ training programme to give healthcare support workers the skills to support patient rehabilitation.

The project is based on the idea that every member of clinical and support staff a patient comes across while in hospital should have a positive impact on their treatment. By teaching healthcare support workers basic physical, mental and cognitive therapy methods, this allows them to support patients outside of their more formal therapy sessions, to aid their recovery and prevent deterioration.

Thanks to the success of the project, further opportunities have been developed to enable student nurses to shadow therapy assistants, physiotherapists and occupational therapists at work giving patients even more access to therapy during their journey in the hospital.

Therapy assistant Emma Sessa is leading the project. She said, “‘Think Therapy’ means ‘think holistically’. If every person a patient comes into contact with assisted with basic rehabilitation, it gives our patients the confidence they need to develop new habits, be independent and speed their recovery along.