My Typical Morning Routine in the SNF

After almost 6 years of OT Practice in Skilled Nursing, I’ve found a few simple things that get my mornings kicked off for the better (and goodness does the day feel like a frazzle when these things don’t come together for me).

A great start to the workday begins before I even get to work.

When my morning routine was at it’s best, I would wake up early to read and pray while sipping a hot coffee. I would wash my face with a favorite cleanser. Take my time getting dressed. Put on a little makeup. Eat breakfast. And either have my lunch ready to go, or actually have the time to pack a proper lunch. Am I saying that my morning routine is this great now? No. There are mornings where I’m literally running out the door. But I will say that when I actually invest in my morning routine at home, the whole workday just feels better.

Once I get to work, there’s a full checklist I go through before I step foot on the floor.

First, I gotta get logged in to the computer (obviously). As a PRN, I write down my punch in/out times in my own planner book just to keep track of how many hours I’m actually getting; as a fulltime staff I skipped that step. I review the day’s list of Patients. This review includes any treatment notes from other therapists if I haven’t recently been in the facility, documentation that may be due, and a 24-hour report on all Residents to check for any acute events that may have occurred the night before.

Then I take the time to map out my ideal treatment day.

I print out a paper copy of my schedule, and write out a few treatment ideas next to each Patient’s name. This will give me a rough idea of when I should initiate each session.

At this point, I’m stepping out on the floor and into each Patient’s morning routine.

Typically I’m arriving as breakfast service is starting. Depending on who I’ve got on schedule, I’ll take a few minutes to assist with transfers down to the dining room. Then I’ll use breakfast for any meal engagement session I might have.

In the midst of this process, I’ll take a quick peek at the Recreation Schedule for the day. In most facilities, the first scheduled activity of the day (after breakfast) starts around 930am.

After breakfast, I’ll transition into morning ADL sessions. I’m always talking to Patients about the activity schedule for the day as we’re completing that ADL session. And my goal is to make sure Patients and Residents are ready to transition right into mid-morning activities and social events (should they desire to attend). This is particularly essential in Memory Care. I never want my Residents siting alone for hours at a time in their rooms while the rest of the building has community events going on.

I’m usually wrapped up with ADL sessions by 10am. Though I do get those individuals here and there that don’t want to get out of bed until 1030.

The rest of the morning can go one of two ways.

I’ll either focus on short-term rehab sessions for individuals who have identified themselves as morning people. Or I’ll work with long-term care Residents during structured group activities.

Before I know it, it’s time to transition to lunch and the bulk of my Patients have been treated for the day.

For me, this system has been almost fool-proof in maximizing my efficiency during the day.

Of course, there are always surprises and anomalies when working in in-patient care. But these few steps when I first arrive to the facility give me a greater ability to quickly adapt to unexpected changes.