Is the Morriston Occupational Therapy Outcome Measure (MOTOM) an appropriate tool for reablement services?

Abstract

Introduction: The Care Act (2014) requires local authorities to provide reablement services but does not standardise how to do this, leading to different services utilising different outcome measures. This article investigates the Morriston Occupational Therapy Outcome Measure, which has been under researched in community reablement settings. Method: A questionnaire was distributed to the staff working within one local authority to seek their experience of using the Morriston Occupational Therapy Outcome Measure. The questionnaire consisted of closed and open-ended questions to gain insights into their understanding and experience of the Morriston Occupational Therapy Outcome Measure. Findings: Quantitative findings showed that staff felt they understood the Morriston Occupational Therapy Outcome Measure, and most respondents agreed that the Morriston Occupational Therapy Outcome Measure was an effective tool for reablement services. However, staff provided contradictory responses as to whether the Morriston Occupational Therapy Outcome Measure was applied consistently or that service users understand the assessment. Qualitative: Findings showed the Morriston Occupational Therapy Outcome Measure is a service user tool, service provider tool, and it provides quality assurance. However, the Morriston Occupational Therapy Outcome Measure can have restricted applicability and within this local authority, more training was needed to improve the consistency of goal-scoring. Conclusion: The Morriston Occupational Therapy Outcome Measure does have strengths within reablement services; however, to ensure it is an effective tool, this research highlights the need for a high level of training.