{"id":7013,"date":"2017-10-01T17:55:56","date_gmt":"2017-10-01T21:55:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/?p=7013"},"modified":"2019-11-22T20:53:05","modified_gmt":"2019-11-23T00:53:05","slug":"energy-conservation-and-your-ot-patient","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/energy-conservation-and-your-ot-patient\/","title":{"rendered":"Energy Conservation  and Your OT Patient"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/tips-from-the-OT-Toolkit-2-300x169.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-7020\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/tips-from-the-OT-Toolkit-2-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/tips-from-the-OT-Toolkit-2-150x84.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/tips-from-the-OT-Toolkit-2-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/tips-from-the-OT-Toolkit-2-1024x575.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/tips-from-the-OT-Toolkit-2.jpg 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>Fatigue is a hallmark symptom for many of our patients. While a simple nap or good night\u2019s sleep cannot eliminate fatigue, it is a condition that can be effectively managed. No matter what the source \u2013 cancer, COPD, cardiac conditions, aging, MS or stroke \u2013 good energy conservation can make a world of difference and help patients accomplish the activities that are most important to them.<\/p>\n<p>The Occupational Therapy Toolkit includes a series of patient education handouts:<br \/>\n\u2022 Energy Conservation Principles<br \/>\n\u2022 Energy Conservation with Meal and Home Management<br \/>\n\u2022 Energy Conservation with Self Care Activities<\/p>\n<p>Make sure you include Energy Conservation education in your practice this week.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Plan<\/strong><br \/>\n1. Set an Appropriate Pace<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Allow enough time to complete a task without having to rush.<\/li>\n<li>Alternate heavy and light tasks during the day and the week.<\/li>\n<li>Don\u2019t over schedule your day or week.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>2. Stay Organized<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Gather all necessary items before starting a task.<\/li>\n<li>Keep needed items organized and within reach.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>3. Simplify and be Realistic<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Prioritize the most important activities.<\/li>\n<li>Don\u2019t hesitate to simplify a task or do something less often.<\/li>\n<li>Ask for help \u2013 be specific when family or friends ask what they can do.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Avoid<\/strong><br \/>\n1. Fatigue<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Plan rest breaks throughout the day or task.<\/li>\n<li>Never wait until you are tired to rest.<\/li>\n<li>Sit when possible.<\/li>\n<li>Practice good sleep habits.<\/li>\n<li>Rest after eating \u2013 digestion uses energy.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>2. Unnecessary Motion<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Limit bending, reaching and twisting.<\/li>\n<li>Minimize arm motion especially above shoulder level.<\/li>\n<li>Keep elbow lows and close to body.<\/li>\n<li>Support elbows on surface during activity.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Body Mechanics<\/strong><br \/>\n1. Maintain Good Posture<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Balances muscles.<\/li>\n<li>Decreases stress.<\/li>\n<li>Eases breathing.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>2. Moving Objects<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Stand close to object to be moved<\/li>\n<li>Push or pull objects rather than lifting<\/li>\n<li>Carry items close to body<\/li>\n<li>Use leg muscles rather than back.<\/li>\n<ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Fatigue is a hallmark symptom for many of our patients. While a simple nap or good night\u2019s sleep cannot eliminate fatigue, it is a condition that can be effectively managed. No matter what the source \u2013 cancer, COPD, cardiac conditions, aging, MS or stroke \u2013 good energy conservation can make&#8230;<a class=\"moretag\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/energy-conservation-and-your-ot-patient\/\"><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color:#DC0201\">Read more<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7020,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[38],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7013","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-treatment-ideas"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/tips-from-the-OT-Toolkit-2.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7013","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7013"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7013\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7021,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7013\/revisions\/7021"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7020"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7013"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7013"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottoolkit.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7013"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}