Why Driving Rehab Matters and Why OTs Are More Ready Than They Think

It is especially important that our roads remain safe for everyone in the community, including for those who may need the help of adaptive practices and equipment to drive. Many OTs already treat people to help them gain back independence. Many OTs already treat people to help them gain back independence and in doing so, whether they realize it or not, are also helping them prepare to return to driving.

OTs have many transferable skills to driver rehabilitation and are specialists in Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs). Driving is one of those IADLs. With the right education and training to become a driver rehab specialist (DRS), OTs can have an even greater, direct impact on helping people gain back independence through driving.

The Overlap Between OT Practice and Driver Rehab

OTs already focus on independence, engagement, functional mobility, and safety of their patients as they perform their everyday activities. Driver rehab is a natural extension of the skills OTs already use, including:

• promoting the highest and safest level of independence
• evaluating functional cognition and decision-making
• assessing vision, motor coordination, balance, and reaction time
• teaching adaptive strategies and adaptive equipment use
• evaluating a person’s environmental fit to improve their safety
• engaging with drivers and their families to positively transition from the driver’s seat to the passenger seat
• being able to support alternative modes of transportation, even during temporary holds on driving
• having a high value for engagement in their profession

There is no one test that can be performed in the clinic by OTs that will consistently predict on-road performance. This is why engagement in the occupation of driving is so important and why occupational therapists are a great fit for assessing someone’s ability to operate a vehicle. We understand that engagement in the occupation (observing someone while they drive) is the best way to understand someone’s readiness to return to driving.

All of these skills are directly applicable to driver rehab and things OTs already know and are passionate about. This is why many OTs transition easily into a DRS role. And, added benefits include more control over their time, increased revenue, and greater fulfillment in helping others.

Common Conditions Seen In OT that Translate to Driver Rehab

There are many conditions that OTs treat regularly that are also routinely covered with drive rehab specialists. Many OTs searching for a new career path find comfort in knowing that not everything will be completely brand new. The same clinical insights OTs already use are foundational to driver assessment and intervention.

Dementia

Dementia affects people’s memory, reaction time, attention spans, and the way they make decisions. OTs are already familiar with cognitive assessments to identify difficulty areas and then provide executive functioning training and safety awareness exercises. DRSs often perform these same things so that they can drive more safely or know when driving needs to be limited.

Mild Cognitive Impairment

Those who struggle with mild cognitive impairment often show a reduced ability to navigate and make decisions while on the road. Their overall executive functioning is often challenged. OTs have knowledge of ways to improve this function alongside functional driving-related tests to help people find their routes, improve multitasking skills, or respond to an unexpected event on the road, even if small.

Parkinson’s Disease

Parkinson’s Disease is known to impair motor control, coordination, and a person’s ability to react. OTs already know how to improve functional mobility and strengthen response speeds with targeted therapy and treatment. In the world of driver rehab, DRSs do the same to help people suffering from this condition become confident with adaptive driving techniques that allow them to be safer and more comfortable on the road.

Low Vision

Low vision can occur as a result of many different conditions and can look different from person to person. Some patients may have a change in their visual acuity while others may struggle with contrast sensitivity or their overall visual field. OTs already know how to help people maximize their vision with pattern recognition and peripheral awareness techniques. These same therapies can apply to driver rehab.

Peripheral Neuropathy

As many OTs know, peripheral neuropathy widely affects the hands and feet, which can greatly interfere with normal driving function. OTs already know what to look for in terms of someone’s balance and movement. DRSs look for these same things and train people with this condition to use modified foot pedals or steering equipment, all while using their knowledge to help with balance exercises and movement retraining as well.

Stroke

Stroke is another big one as we prepare and make sure someone still has the vision skills needed for seeing, all the movement needed to turn the wheel and operate the pedals, but also the cognitive focus to quickly make decisions. OTs are excellent teachers in this situation, as they know the targeted therapies and adjustments that will help someone succeed behind the wheel.

How Becoming a Driver Rehab Specialist Expands Your Impact

Transitioning from an occupational therapist into a role as a driver rehab specialist is a way you can enhance continuity of care for your patients that already trust you as an OT. It expands your impact in a way that uses your current skills in a way that addresses a major safety and independence concern, which is driving.

Driving helps your patients reach bigger goals. It goes beyond not just where they will go once they leave your care but also how they will get around. There is more to life than getting up and getting dressed, and driver rehab helps to make sure patients have somewhere to go and a way to get there.

Driving rehab is also an open opportunity for a new specialization in the world of occupational therapy with room for worthwhile career enhancement. As you can see, OTs are already more prepared for this transition than you might have originally thought!

Introducing the Adaptive Mobility Driving Rehab Education Program

Ready to take the leap from OT to an OT DRS? Adaptive Mobility has an educational program just for you that is paired with mentorship from an OT DRS herself, Susie Touchinsky.

The Adaptive Mobility Services DRS education is a comprehensive, 2-part training that is designed specifically for OTs looking to transition into a driver rehab role. It equips OTs with knowledge and skills to effectively integrate driving rehab into their practice.

The DRS education begins with online modules on driving risk assessment, moving into a hybrid online learning and hands-on workshop to empower OTs in the world of driver rehab. Because the training is designed specifically for OTs, it strengthens the foundational skills they already have in treating those with cognitive, sensory, and movement challenges while sharpening their lens for thinking about driving risks.

Enroll in Our OT-to-DRS Program Today

OTs of all backgrounds and experience levels are welcome to become driver rehab specialists. Many already have the clinical experience needed to excel in this role and just need a little boost to learn the ways of the road as an OT. Enroll in Adaptive Mobility’s DRS education program today to learn how to confidently apply your OT skills to driving rehab.