Dorset Council UK
Occupational Therapist - Home First Team
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About the Role
The Home First Occupational Therapy team is a vital part of the wider Home First service, working to support the smooth and timely discharge of individuals from both acute hospitals and community settings. Operating within the Discharge to Assess model, the team ensures that people who are clinically optimised and no longer require hospital care are assessed for support in the most appropriate environment. This approach enables individuals to continue their recovery in a familiar setting, promoting independence, confidence, and wellbeing.
Occupational Therapists in the team play a key role in supporting safe and effective discharges by undertaking comprehensive assessments both before and after discharge. Prior to discharge, they work closely with hospital teams, individuals, and families to identify potential risks, establish likely support needs, and plan for a safe return home. Following discharge, they complete strengths-based assessments within the person's own environment, where they can gain a more accurate understanding of functional ability and determine what level of support is required. This enables the delivery of optimum care, ensuring that individuals receive the right level of intervention—neither too much nor too little—while maximising independence and reducing reliance on long-term services where possible.
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Occupational Therapists work flexibly across the county, combining remote working with in-person visits. Each therapist maintains strong links with one of the three area clusters, fostering a collaborative and integrated approach to service delivery. This structure supports consistency, shared learning, and a responsive service that adapts to local needs.
Using their specialist skills in functional assessment, manual handling, equipment provision, and home adaptations, Occupational Therapists empower individuals to take positive, well-managed risks. Through a strengths-based approach, they assess functional ability and work closely with clients, families, carers, and professionals to develop tailored plans that support independence, build resilience, and prevent unnecessary decline. Therapists also review care arrangements following discharge, ensuring that any commissioned care accurately reflects the individual's assessed needs and ongoing potential for recovery and reablement.
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The focus is always on delivering the right care, in the right place, at the right time. This is a role for someone who thrives in a dynamic, person-centred environment, values teamwork, and is passionate about making a meaningful difference in people’s lives.
Why Join Us?
- Be part of a high-impact team that makes a real difference in people’s lives.
- Enjoy a hybrid working model that supports work-life balance.
- Access ongoing professional development and peer support.
- Contribute to a service that values innovation, integration, and person-centred care.
- Develop specialist skills in Discharge to Assess, strengths-based practice, and optimising care provision within people's own homes.
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