Seating specialist and occupational therapy service come together to launch posture guide

Repose Furniture, a specialist in bespoke seating solutions, has launched a new posture guide that has been developed in association with The OT Service.

The posture guide is aimed at healthcare professionals involved in seating assessments.  The ability to identify postural need and be aware of the options to support this need are critical so that intervention is timely and appropriate.

The ability to apply up-to-date evidence base to a robust clinical reasoning process ensures that the assessor is both confident and competent to make recommendations that have a significant impact on current and future health, well-being and activity engagement.

According to Repose, its new guide provides clinicians with a well-researched guide into what they need to know about seating assessments.

Kate Sheehan, Director of The OT Service and Repose’s resident occupational therapist, commented: “We have worked with Repose to ensure the Guide provides a step by step analysis to support the clinician when assessing and recommending the correct seating solution to meet their clients needs which can often be complex.

“As experienced OT’s ourselves, we know exactly what our colleagues can encounter when conducting assessments and I hope this guide will further help with the outstanding work OT’s are doing on a daily basis across the UK.”

The guide is illustrated throughout to explain the advice being given and these are complemented by an assessment template.

Also incorporated within the guide are several case studies which detail the patient’s condition and post assessment recommendations and further educate the reader on how posture can impact on everyday tasks, long-term health and wellbeing.

The main topics covered within the guide are:

• Education and evidence base for seating measurements
• Information regarding the importance of good seating posture
• Clear understanding of spinal deformity and the support options in sitting
• Holistic seating assessment guidelines and clinical reasoning checklist
• Postural passport to aid handover and future assessment reviews

Lisa Wardley, Managing Director of Repose, said: “Here at Repose, we are acutely aware of the important role Healthcare Professionals play in the assessment of people’s seating requirements.

“We have been working with Kate Sheehan and The OT Service for several years now and Kate has played a significant role in the creation of the guide and I hope it will help Healthcare Professionals when they are working with their clients to assess their individual seating requirements.”

For more information on the full range of bespoke seating solutions available from Repose, people can call 0844 7766001, email info@reposefurniture.co.uk or visit the website