Recreational Therapy to Maximize Client Care and Advocacy

Program Overview:

Recreational Therapy is a therapeutic service often overlooked for continued client care. It is a great service that can also help to continue to advocate for those with disabilities. The benefits for Recreational Therapy are endless and yet many healthcare professionals and patient’s rights advocates do not have a clear concise way to describe, apply or understand the practice for their clientele's medical care.

Patient Advocates, nurse case managers and other healthcare professionals will learn more about the Recreational Therapy profession and how to incorporate TR services into their client's care. Application of the Recreational Therapy goals and objectives towards healing for those with a variety of health concerns will be addressed. Participants will have the knowledge to state TR treatment paths for those with traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, mental health issues and much more. This session will be able to identify quality of life concerns and tie it to cost savings that will be ideal for everyone involved in the treatment process and care for the client.

Program Objectives:

1. Identify the benefits and purpose of Recreational Therapy and apply those benefits to specific client advocacy cases.
2. Recall the TR process and types of treatment plans.
3. Explain barriers to participation and social interaction for clients with disabilities.

The Recreational Therapy profession can be traced back to the 1850s and yet it is still not a widely used service to those with disabilities. The Recreational Therapy profession helps combat secondary health issues such as obesity, mental illness, PTSD, inappropriate socialization concerns, cognitive deficits and so much more. Participants will learn more about this unique therapy and how to apply it for client success. Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialists (CTRS) is a much different profession than CNAs, LPNs, PTs, OTs and speech. Specific goals, objectives and treatment plans for Recreational Therapy clients are subjective in nature and require more than other therapies are sometimes able to offer. Connecting the hospital setting to the home setting is the basis of Recreational Therapy's success for client improvement mentally, physically, emotionally and socially. A better quality of life for every client (returning to work or remaining at home) is an ultimate goal and Recreational Therapy is the service to get them there.