This page will cover :

What are Multi-Disciplinary Teams? (MDT).
Who are the different professionals involved in a MDT?.
The role of the Occupational Therapist in the Acute Care setting.
Why is an Occupational Therapist important within an MDT in an acute setting?.
Links to videos related to MDT and the different professionals involved.
What are the key attributes of an effective MDT?.
A link to Padlet for ideas/discussion activity.
Activity related to the role of OT in a MDT.
A post session quiz to recap your learning.

Now scroll down to see the information and complete the activities

What are Multi-Disciplinary Teams?

The Multi-Disciplinary Team

in the Acute Setting

A Multi-Disciplinary Team (MDT) is a group of professionals from different disciplines who come together to achieve a common goal when planning and co-ordinating an individual's care and treatment.
They may also be described as interdisciplinary teams or multi-professional teams. Importantly, there is no one set form of MDT; they can and often do, include a wide range of disciplines beyond a particular service setting and beyond direct care roles; service users and carers can also sometimes play a part where appropriate. Implementation requires a flexible approach, and so measures of success will differ (HEE 2021).

Different MDT professionals within an Acute Setting may include:

Occupational Therapists:

Help overcome challenges related to accidents, illness, disability, mental health issues and ageing. By assessing how the individual is able to complete daily activities that are meaningful to them or they are required to do. They work with individuals to adapt or find solutions to meet their needs and goals.

Physiotherapists:

Help people affected by injury, illness or disability through movement and exercise, manual therapy, education and advice.

Dieticians:

Assess, diagnose and treat dietary and nutritional problems.

Nurses

Oversee the care provided and plans made for leaving hospital.

Doctors/Consultants

Decide what medical care should be provided and decides when the individual is well enough to be discharged from hospital.

Radiographer

Generally use x-rays, alongside other imaging modalities, to see inside a patient's body and help diagnose what is wrong with them.

Social Workers

Work with individuals to find solutions to their problems. This may be helping to protect vulnerable people from harm or abuse or supporting people to live independently.

Healthcare Assistants

Deliver and assist clinical staff in the provision of treatment, preventative care, health promotion and patient education.

The role of the Occupational Therapist in the acute setting

Occupational Therapists aim to:

Ensure that individuals develop, improve, sustain or restore their independence in order to help maintain their quality of life and well-being and to prevent further hospital admissions.
They will provide intervention and advice, focusing on daily activities that are meaningful to the individual that have been impacted by acute onset, exacerbation of their condition or injury

Why is an Occupational Therapist important within an MDT in the acute setting?

A day in the life of an occupational therapist including an MDT meeting

03.00 mins

The OT is important in an MDT in an acute setting because:

They assess an individuals current function (self-care, cognition and mobility)
They gather information on an individuals home environment and previous level of function
They prescribe assistive equipment or environmental modifications
They collaborative with service users, carers and other MDT professionals to set goals for the individual.
They assist the MDT with discharge planning.
They may complete a home visit to assess the individuals ability to function in their home environment.
They participate in MDT meetings

Have a look through the videos below

Watch these three videos, to gain an overview of an MDT meeting and the different professionals involved.

What are multidisciplinary teams? (Integrated care)

02.34 mins

Health and social care Multi-Disciplinary Team

06.06 mins

Amputee care Multidisciplinary Team meeting with Occupational Therapist

15:30 mins

What are the key attributes of an effective MDT?

Clear communication between the team members is vital in ensuring that correct and important information is shared and understood between each of the different professions by utilising active listening skills. This should include using accessible language and avoiding the use of too much medical jargon.Good communication would also involve that the language, communication style and manner between the members are always professional and respectful

Patient Centred Care within an MDT should focus on providing personalised care planning and coordination based on individual needs, preferences and lifestyle. Person centred care should involve shared decision making between the MDT members and the patient so that the patient has more choice and control over how their care is planned and delivered.

Collaboration involves working in partnership with the MDT, where the different skills, knowledge and experience is shared between team members.
Member Diversity is an essential characteristic of a good team, an MDT should involve a wide range of professions, disciplines, individual attributes and experiences to ensure a holistic care delivery

Clear goals, objectives and strategies are essential for a successful MDT. These need to be realistic, achievable and should be understood and agreed by all members of the team. Goals and objectives should also involve patients so that care planning and coordination is person centred.

Information Sharing involves presenting and exchanging key information between different professionals who are part of the MDT, for the purpose of care planning of the patient. This should only include information that is relevant, necessary and appropriate for the patients care. It is also important to adhere to confidentiality procedures and gaining consent.

Support for team members include having a supportive environment where each team member can confidently engage and contribute to team meetings as well as being able to raise any concerns.

Awareness and recognition of the different roles and clinical expertise within the team is important for creating an inclusive culture that recognises the strength and value of individual members. This should involve a shared understanding of team member roles and an appreciation of the specialist knowledge they bring to the MDT.

ACTIVITY 1

Now click on the link on the left to access the Padlet and answer the questions.

You will need to click on the + sign under each question to add your thoughts.

ACTIVITY 2

Watch this short video of an MDT meeting and then complete the activity below

Betty's MDT meeting

4:31 mins

Betty has been admitted to hospital as her kidney disease has progressed significantly. The team discuss her care and treatment plan.

Activity

You are the OT attending the meeting.

Consider the following:

What questions might you ask the other members of the MDT?
What further information would you require?
In your OT role, what would your suggestions be to support Betty?

Write your answers on a word document and upload this to Pebblepad to evidence your learning.

Post session activity
Complete the quiz below

To complete the quiz , click the square grey box when it appears to the right of the quiz

complete all 12 questions to retrieve your score at the end of the quiz

You can access more useful information, links and videos by clicking on the Additional Resources pages on the top left of this page.

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