Helping you maintain your professional identity, develop your core skills and integrate theory into professional practice.
Ruth Hambling
BSc (Hons), Pg Cert
Welcome to The MoHO OT. I am Ruth, a UK-based HCPC registered OT who provides MOHO theory training and clinical supervision.
Where it started...
I accidentally stumbled across the field of Occupational Therapy after studying Sports Performance Coaching and Sports Therapy at University when I applied for a job as a Splinting and Bracing Technician at my local hospital. Following five fun-filled years working with the Trauma and Orthopaedics team in Fracture Clinic and supporting the Hand Therapy Team with splinting clinics, I decided to make the leap of faith and head back to university and study to become a fully-fledged Occupational Therapist. Since graduating with my BSc, I have completed a Pg Cert in Clinical Supervision, and am currently studying an MSc in Advancing Practise specialising in Sensory Integration.
After my graduation, I returned to the physical health field and practised in inpatient Neuro Rehab, which, on reflection, is where I truly had my first experience working as a practitioner with patients who had mental health needs. Fast forward a few years and a few more posts on rotation, I found myself drawn to a new project setting up a ward for patients with complex chronic mental health conditions. The aim of the project was to develop a service targeted at service users who were experiencing prolonged or multiple hospital admissions as a result of their mental health and/or social circumstances.
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Being the only OT within the MDT for a significant period of the project meant that it was my responsibility to develop the Occupational Therapy service and treatment pathway on the ward. This is where my love for MOHO really grew. Using MOHO enabled me to construct a pathway robust enough to respond to acute bed pressures and the ever-changing political landscape while remaining focused on delivering care within the recovery framework and most importantly keeping the service user at the core. I have since returned to acute inpatient mental health and continue with my love for service development and am currently developing and delivering a pathway that is person-centred, flexible and enables smooth transitions from acute services, into the rehab setting and/or the community to ensure that they have support in the longer term. The use of the Model of Human Occupation enables the occupational therapist to place the person, their family and/or carers at the centre of the decisions made and enable the achievement of the person’s recovery goals, while fostering autonomy and improving their social and occupational functioning, with the hope of providing service users with a better experience of mental health services.
I am also passionate about supporting my colleagues and providing opportunities for CPD, reflection and personal development. I believe that quality supervision and mentoring are essential for not only Occupational Therapy students but also those currently practising or transitioning into retirement or new life journeys. Through clinical education, mentoring and clinical supervision, I aim to instil a passion for helping service users find meaningful occupations, through the use of occupationally focused interventions. By supporting occupational therapists to use the Model of Human Occupation in practice I am to support them to enable their service users to gain the skills to manage both their everyday activities, their mental health and physical health, as well as achieve their recovery goals, with the ultimate goal to reduce the length of stay, reduce re-admission rates to hospital, enable sustained recovery in the community and promote social inclusion while increasing the service user’s chances of securing settled accommodation and paid employment.
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If you would like to explore how my MOHO knowledge could help you improve your service or would like some clinical supervision, please contact me for a free informal chat.
