How did your career in occupational therapy progress?
“I spent much of my working life with the NHS, initially in an acute hospital environment then moving into the community. When I first transitioned to a community role, I was the only OT in a team of physiotherapists – we quickly identified the enormous contributions occupational therapy could make and strengthened our OT team accordingly!
I initially took a secondment into social care, working on a joint NHS and social care ‘Discharge to Assess’ project, with the aim of at bringing services together. Although this never came to fruition as a single team, it was an interesting learning curve and highlighted some key areas where improvements could be made, some of which were implemented.
When the post came up as Lead Practitioner for the Integrated Community Equipment Service working for Sheffield City Council Adult Social Care Commissioning, it was a match for my skills, a new challenge and an opportunity to further develop my experience. When I first joined, the incumbent CES provider was the British Red Cross, and the service was preparing to go out to tender – a baptism of fire for my new role!
In 2020, Medequip assumed responsibility for the service. My journey with Medequip began and I soon appreciated the way they operated and their commitment to ongoing improvement and client satisfaction. One of the areas I always found most rewarding was the opportunity to go into the depot and focus on recycled specials equipment, improving services for the people who needed support with more specialised items as well as making an important contribution to saving time and resources.
When I attended my first NAEP Conference in 2022, I was made to feel so welcomed by the Medequip team and had some extremely valuable conversations. Fiona Wassdell-Bowyer was inspirational and remembers me commenting “I want to work for you”. So, when the opportunity to work for Medequip in Rotherham was advertised in the summer of 2024, I decided to take a leap of faith and applied for a temporary position in Rotherham. From November 2024 to February 2026, I worked closely with the NHS commissioner, and adult social care leads to develop guidance and processes with the aim of improving prescriber behaviour, accountability and cost avoidance. When Medequip was awarded the CES contract for Doncaster, I was pleased to accept a permanent role with the company as Clinical Advisor/ Occupational Therapist – I’ve now been in post for several months.”
What does your work with Medequip involve?
I’m finding it varied and interesting, which is important because I really enjoy a challenge! On a day-to-day basis, I’m working closely with commissioners, improving the standard catalogue offer, using my experience to contribute to the Specials panels process, networking with social care and NHS leads, and developing training sessions for prescribers and depot staff focused on upskilling.
The OT team spends a lot of time at Medequip depots around the country, setting up new equipment and ensuring our people are trained in its use and installation, problem solving with depot staff, using our knowledge and expertise to ensure they understand all available options and how to identify the best way forward.
However, a key focus for my work is around the people who use our services, ensuring we always achieve the highest levels of quality in terms of equipment, continuously improving communications channels and ensuring that all recycled specials equipment goes out in the best condition and is completely fit for purpose.
What are the challenges you face in your role?
“Definitely the financial squeeze we are all experiencing everywhere, which is why the clinical advisor/OT function is proving so vital.
Prescribers are extremely busy and have a limited amount of time. We want the entire process to be as easy as possible, but also to reduce the possibility of overprescribing, helping them to understand how the ordering systems work to maximise efficiencies.
In addition, our expertise, our knowledge of equipment and our experience working with people with different conditions means we can help create an accurate picture of each individual and their needs, to ensure our support is timely and appropriate.”
What are the rewards for you?
“Definitely hearing about the positive impact the equipment has and the difference it makes to people’s lives. I recently spoke with a neighbour who had undergone several hospital admissions and made use of our service with equipment including a bath lift, helping her to recover and retain her independence at home.
Also working with prescribers to ensure they are fully aware of what is available, liaising with my colleagues at depot level to make improvements through actions and conversations, and here at Doncaster seeing the improvements in efficiencies and organisation under Medequip management, building trust with our commissioners.
Knowing you have helped get vital equipment back into service is also a great satisfaction, reusing recycled items and saving significant amounts of money for the NHS and social care. I also relish the opportunity to play a role in upskilling people to create stronger teams, working with all our different departments from cleaning through to driver technicians and liaising with supervisors to implement more efficient processes.
And finally working with my valued colleagues – a special shout out to all my colleagues as well as the wider clinical team at Medequip, who continue to be the greatest source of information, knowledge and support!”