About OPN

Involving the patient in treatment planning through excellent communication skills results in higher levels of adherence, better clinical outcomes as well as increased patient satisfaction. This course describes how to actively involve the patient in treatment planning through the Ozer Payton Nelson Method (OPN). The OPN Method is a cyclical structured process of helping patients identify concerns, establish goals, identify outcomes and evaluate the treatment plan. This course will develop your professional communication skills, and show you how to use the OPN Method to achieve greater success in your practice. Register

OPN Authors

Mark Ozer, M.D., Otto Payton, Ph.D., PT, FAPTA, and Craig Nelson, M.S., OTR/L collaborated for more than 10 years to advance patient centered care.  In 1990, their first book entitled, Patient Participation in Program Planning: A Manual for Therapists was published.  At that time Dr. Ozer was Assistant Chief, Spinal Cord Injury Service, Hunter Holmes McGuire VA Medical Center and Associate Professor of Neurology, Medical College of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University.  Dr. Payton was Professor of Physical Therapy and Mr. Nelson was Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy, School of Allied Health Professions, Virginia Commonwealth University.

Dr. Payton and Mr. Nelson emphasized patient centered care in their respective courses.  They also conducted research and led students in various research projects. 

In 2000, Ozer, Payton, and Nelson published a revised and updated work entitled, Treatment Planning for Rehabilitation, A Patient-Centered Approach.  Dr. Ozer had become Professor, Department of Neurology, Georgetown University Medical School and Director, Program for Clinical Excellence, National Rehabilitation Hospital, Washington, D.C.  Mr. Nelson had become Director of Occupational Therapy and Rehabilitative Services, Hiram Davis Medical Center, Petersburg, Virginia.

Course Background

Patients and their families are becoming more active consumers of health care services and are expecting to participate in decision-making. Studies show that involving patients in the treatment planning process improves adherence, clinical outcomes, discharge planning, and decreases patient anxiety and malpractice lawsuits.

The vast majority of clinicians believe they involve patients, yet the medical literature demonstrates the opposite; most therapists involve patients at far less than optimal levels. Among the reasons cited are:

·   Clinicians confuse conversation skills, which most have, with professional communication skills, which most do not possess [Psychosocial Aspects of Clinical Practice]
·   Clinicians are not adequately prepared [Institute of Medicine]
·    Informal interview is the most often used method to involve the patient, even though this method has been demonstrated to be inadequate and inconsistently applied [American Journal of Occupational Therapy].

The OPN Method was designed as a systematic and efficient method to actively involve patients in treatment planning. Register

Cost

Please contact us regarding price. Fees at educational institutions are waived. Register

Course Location

Courses are held at your facility. Register