Expanding self-management support from chronic to acute care: Implications for value

In this article, I advocate the expansion of self-management support from chronic to acute care as a means of increasing the value of services and highlighting the value of occupational therapy. Like people with chronic conditions, clients with acute conditions (1) need to participate in their own care, (2) require support for participation, (3) engage in care outside of traditional medical behaviors, and (4) benefit from a focus of care that extends beyond discrete episodes. Self-management support can facilitate adherence, promote holistic conceptualizations of health, and address long-term outcomes and costs. Given that self-management support aligns with occupational therapy’s philosophical roots, expansion of self-management support to acute care highlights the profession’s contribution to health promotion in this practice area.