Interdisciplinary and Transdisciplinary Teams in Rehabilitation 

Beyond Occupation Companion Audio

Read the full companion article: Interdisciplinary and Transdisciplinary Teams in Rehabilitation

Rehabilitation depends on collaboration, but having several professionals involved does not automatically mean care is coordinated.

In this companion audio, Michelle Eliason breaks down the differences among multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary care and explains how each model influences communication, shared goals, professional roles, and the patient experience.

The episode discusses:

• What makes a rehabilitation team truly interdisciplinary
• How interdisciplinary care differs from multidisciplinary care
• How physicians, nurses, physical therapists, occupational therapy practitioners, speech-language pathologists, social workers, and case managers may contribute to the same functional goal
• Why professional overlap does not automatically mean duplication
• How transdisciplinary teams integrate expertise and reinforce selected strategies across disciplines
• Why legal scope, competence, and professional responsibility must still be respected
• Where occupational therapy fits within rehabilitation teamwork
• Why occupation-centered reasoning and activity analysis remain central to occupational therapy
• How occupational therapy practitioners can communicate and protect the full scope of the profession

A stroke rehabilitation example illustrates how different team members may address medical stability, mobility, communication, cognition, swallowing, medication management, environmental barriers, discharge planning, and everyday routines while working toward shared outcomes.

The episode also addresses the reality that healthcare systems are often hierarchical. Although transdisciplinary care may offer the most integrated experience for patients and families, collaboration can become difficult when certain professions receive greater authority, visibility, or reimbursement while others must repeatedly justify their role.

Michelle also discusses why occupational therapy should not be reduced to dressing, bathing, or upper-extremity exercise. Occupational therapy practitioners may address movement, gait, balance, cognition, vision, sensation, emotional regulation, environmental demands, and other factors affecting occupational performance. The distinction lies in how occupational therapy analyzes the relationship among the person, task, environment, habits, roles, routines, and meaningful occupations.

The central message is that collaboration does not require occupational therapy to become smaller. Strong teamwork occurs when every profession clearly understands its contribution, respects the expertise of others, communicates effectively, and confidently brings its full value to the table.

Member Resources

• Tips to Navigate Professional Bullying
• Protecting Professional Autonomy
• Interprofessional Value Handout

Continue Learning With Us

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