Delivering Best Practice: Our Paediatric Clinical Lead Emma
The OT Practice’s in-house paediatric team is committed to providing expert support to both our OTs and clients. Our dedicated Paediatric Clinical Lead Emma, combines her clinical and managerial experience working with children and their families, to promote professional development amongst our occupational therapists. Find out below what Emma has to say about the support and guidance her role provides to our paediatric team.
What attracted you to working with The OT Practice?
I joined as an associate initially and I loved the flexibility, the scope and variety of work offered. The company's ethos aligns well with my values as an OT, and the long-term vision is excellent. I’m excited to lead a fantastic group of expert OTs providing a high-quality paediatric service across the UK and NI. Above all, I want to shine a spotlight on all that paediatric OTs do, especially how they impact the lives of others.
How do you promote best practice and quality in paediatric occupational therapy?
By living and breathing it. I’m passionate about continuing professional development by keeping abreast of current best practices and new ideas. I am responsible for reviewing new clinical guidance and sharing my learning and experience with our wider network to ensure that we continually promote quality in our profession.
As you are based in head office, how does your role support the in-house teams that look after paediatric clients and the associates on your network?
With the in-house team, I’m all about supporting them in the best way I can – my clinical understanding and experience in the field underpins everything I do. I truly embrace the holistic lens for complex cases and help the team find the most suitable therapists for our clients. For our associates, I provide the opportunity to reflect on clinical cases and work through any queries they may have to help find a solution. I am the first point of contact for all our therapists, and I find it motivates them to share feedback about the great work being completed every day.
We know you have recently introduced some new ways to connect the OT community, can you tell us a bit more?
I want our associates to have a safe place to discuss whatever issues they want to bring to me, and to have a point of contact where they can share their ideas and explore new ones. All associates have the opportunity to network and reflect with me, but we have also created the opportunity to do this with each other which I am very excited about. There are so many fantastic development opportunities for our therapists, which also helps build their CPD portfolio for HCPC.
What qualities do you look for in OTs interested in joining and finally, what advice would you give to paediatric therapists looking to start their career in private practice?
I enjoy working with therapists who are committed, motivated and have a love for paediatrics. A lot of therapists I speak to think they do not have enough experience to work privately however, they do! Children still have the same needs no matter which sector you are assessing them in, therefore the skills are transferrable. So, my advice? Love what you do. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box. Be committed to researching your ideas and continually improving. Stay focused and enjoy the flexibility that working in the private sector can offer you.
If you would like to find out more about our OT Practice Kids team and speak to Emma, please contact her on emmahall@theotpractice.com.
