Maggie is a 61 year old female referred to home healthOT on October 29th with a diagnosis of R Colles fracture. Maggiefell while shopping at her neighborhood department store on October27th. The physician has ordered OT to evaluate andtreat.

Often times the OT will be given the client’s name anddiagnosis and little else. The information given above is typicalof the information you may be given to start a case. With thisinformation, the therapist can start to think about how the caseshould be approached.  

The stage of reasoning development should also beconsidered (novice - expert)

Even though the information given is minimal, there ismuch that you may already know about the case. Think about what youknow already and what you will need to know to effectively managethe case. Consider your developmental stage/experience. You mayhave learned this information from school and/or from lifeexperiences. To guide your analysis of what you do or do not know,answer the questions below:

• Do you know what a Colles fracture is? (proceduralreasoning)

• Do you know what the clinical signs and symptoms of aColles fracture are? Complicating factors? (proceduralreasoning)

• Do you know the medical management for a Collesfracture? Precautions? (procedural reasoning)

• What is the prognosis of recovery post-Colles fracture?(procedural reasoning)

• What might this woman “look like” (clientfactors/clinical presentation) and be able to do 2 days post-Collesfracture? (procedural reasoning)

• Do you have an image of the capabilities of a 61-yearold woman who goes shopping? (narrative reasoning)

• Might this image give you some indication of her priorlevel of function and roles as well as an idea of her dischargesituation and goals? (conditional reasoning)

• Do you know her perception or how the woman feels aboutthis injury? (interactive reasoning)

• Do you know what resources are available? physical,social and financial (pragmatic reasoning)