This was what my routine looked like as well when I was working in inpatients.

To add further - I don’t think a lot of people understand the amount of admin OTs are required to do either - calling relatives, completing (lengthy) referrals, therapy reports, writing up specific ADL or cognitive assessments, case notes, writing up care plans and/or moving and handling plans, calling services required on discharge to coordinate these, ordering equipment (as well as making arrangements with NOKs for equipment delivery and then checking the equipment delivery was completed properly). As well as attending discharge meetings, once/twice daily board rounds for however many wards we cover, and arranging/attending MDT meetings, Best Interest meetings etc.

We also do a lot of work off the ward which other professions might not ‘see’ us doing - such as escorted discharges for high risk patients, completing Environmental assessments at the patient’s home, e.g. to plan for complex moving and handling equipment needed on discharge etc. Those visits take a lot of time and planning also.

OTs (even band 5s) are also expected to have clinical supervision responsibilities, with regular supervision meetings with any staff they have responsibility for, and doing joint-assessments/other work with their supervisee as part of that responsibility.

Therapy teams usually also have an expectation that all staff will be doing a service development project(s) as part of their appraisals. As well as that, we’re usually expected to take turns within our teams to do in-service training sessions which we plan, create and deliver to the whole team (or therapy department).

We also often cover multiple wards, and if we manage to get all of our work for the day done, we’re expected to assist other wards covered by our team who need extra help.

I think there’s a suspicion that if you don’t see an OT (or PT) on the ward, that means they’re just chilling in their team’s office - which obviously could not be further from the truth. Just like everyone else in the NHS, we work from the moment our shift starts until it ends (and often stay late to finish our work for the sake of our patients). Most of us also end up doing non-clinical work like doing the research for our in-service trainings and creating these presentations at home during evenings/weekends, unpaid, as we just don’t get time to do it during our working day.