Just wanted to vent to others who might understand...I've worked in acute care for 5 years, in 2 different facilities. Why is it that nursing staff have no trouble interrupting an OT session with a patient (to give meds, change I.V., take vitals etc) ...but they think twice about interrupting a PT session??!!!  I absolutely HATE this lack of respect...anyone else have this trouble? 

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OTR/L IN ILLINOIS

Yes!  I get this all the time, not with only nursing but all of the staff.  In fact just today I had a patient in the therapy gym, she was sitting in her wheelchair and the activity director came in, right up to her and started talking to her.  When she left the patient told me that yesterday the activity director told her that I needed to do more activity with her arms.  Her office is directly acrost from the therapy gym so I loudly talked that she would need to know and understand what all of her problems are that we are working on and she does not that we do not just work with a persons arms.  I am so tempted to get the meaning of OT and give it to her while I tell her that we do not just work on arms!  I get tired of dealing with these type of situations because they do not see us in the hall walking people they think we do not do anything.

I do some OT in acute care and the doctors ALWAYS interrupt both OT and PT!  LOL -- But the other staff (nurses, nursing assistants, social services, even respiratory) let us know they need the patient also, but usually don't interrupt, unless it is urgent or the patient has to go for a test. In acute care, you have to work as a team and sometimes the patient's medical condition takes precedence.

I might have nicely told the activity director that the patient was in the middle of her therapy treatment and would be available in -- minutes. If you don't stand up for yourself, believe me, nobody else will.

Maybe a little inservicing on OT would go a long way towards understanding and teamwork?