Date Presented 04/12/21 The purpose of this study was to explore students’ prior anatomy coursework, their perceived preparedness in anatomy, and their performance in a mandatory human movement course in an OT program. The secondary purpose was to determine student interest in a potential online anatomy review course. More than half the participants felt that they were underprepared for anatomy-related content, indicating that an additional stand-alone anatomy course may be beneficial to students in OT programs. Primary Author and Speaker: Ashleigh Giles Additional Authors and Speakers: Cristin Holland, Susan Agostine Contributing Authors: Stephanie Bristol, John Sideris, Emily Schulze, Yun-Ju Chen, Elizabeth Choi, Aaron Dallman, Linda Watson, Elizabeth Crais, Grace Baranek, and Amanda M. Wiles

As the health care system continues to evolve toward one based on quality not quantity, demonstrating the value of occupational therapy has never been more important. Providing high-quality services, achieving optimal outcomes, and identifying and promoting occupational therapy’s distinct value are the responsibilities of all practitioners. In relation to the Improving Medicare Post-Acute Care Transformation (IMPACT) Act of 2014 , the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is implementing new functional items and related outcome performance measures across postacute care (PAC) settings. Practitioners can demonstrate the role and value of occupational therapy services through their participation in data collection and the interpretation of the resulting performance measures. In this column, we review the objectives of the IMPACT Act, introduce the new self-care and mobility items and outcome performance measures being implemented in PAC settings, and describe ways to use these new data to advocate for occupational therapy. We also discuss American Occupational Therapy Association initiatives to provide materials and guidance for occupational therapy practitioners to contribute to PAC data collection.

Occupational therapists have a long history of assessing functional cognition, defined as the ability to use and integrate thinking and performance skills to accomplish complex everyday activities. In response to passage of the Improving Medicare Post-Acute Care Transformation (IMPACT) Act of 2014 (Pub. L. 113–185), the American Occupational Therapy Association has been advocating that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services consider functional cognition for inclusion in routine patient assessment in postacute care settings, with important implications for occupational therapy. These efforts have the potential to increase referrals to occupational therapy, emphasize the importance of addressing functional cognition in occupational therapy practice, and support the value of occupational therapy in achieving optimal postacute care outcomes.

The Improving Medicare Post-Acute Transformation (IMPACT) Act of 2014 will set the course for much of postacute care well into the next decade. It (1) authorizes a uniform method of patient assessment in postacute care; (2) sets a timetable for developing, implementing, and reporting quality measures; and (3) lays the groundwork for future payment reform in postacute care. This article places the IMPACT Act into the larger arc of health care reform and change. It summarizes the law’s key provisions and presents a contrarian analysis of this much-heralded bipartisan legislation. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010 already gives the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services the authority to implement what the IMPACT Act requires. The IMPACT Act may even slow down the changes envisioned in the ACA. The article concludes by noting the implications for occupational therapy both as a practice and a profession.