Health Professionals
Is your patient fit to drive?
- Do you or the family have concerns that a patient may be a danger on the road?
- Has the patient had an acute medical condition that has altered their cognitive ability, vision or physical abilities that may impact on driving ability?
- Does your patient have a chronic condition that is slowly changing their function and your query if it has got to the point of concern for driving safety?
- Do you have a younger client that lives with a disability and they are asking about driving for the first time and you are not sure if they have the functional capacity to drive safely?
At Williams Occupational Therapy, we understand that determining fitness to drive can be a challenging area and may present difficult decisions. We also understand that in South Australia there is legislation in place enforcing medical practitioners, physiotherapists and eye specialists to report to the state licensing authority if they consider their patient is unsafe to continue driving due to a medical condition (other health professionals are encouraged to voluntarily report concerns). But how do you determine that in a consulting room?
A Driver Assessment Report gained from a practical occupational therapy driver assessment may support your medical assessment and facilitate decision-making around your patient’s capacity to drive.
The national medical guideline “Assessing Fitness to Drive” (Austroads) provides a uniform framework of clear minimum medical requirements to assist decision-making by health professionals and the State Licensing Authority (SLA). These guidelines articulate when a driver assessment may be required to help determine driver fitness. When this is required, Williams OT is your specialist service.
When is a practical driving assessment required?
Austroads (2012) states that a practical driving assessment is necessary when clarifying the impact of complex medical conditions on driving ability. At Williams Occupational Therapy we offer car and truck through to multi-combination heavy vehicle assessments, motorcycle assessments, bus assessments, and machinery practical assessments.
Prior to a practical driving assessment, a Health Professional must determine that the Austroads criteria have been met, or as a minimum, that the patient is medically fit to undertake a practical driver assessment. Completion of a Medical Certificate of Fitness (MR712/MR713) is recommended but is required if a patient’s license has been previously medically suspended.
A copy of these forms can be found by scrolling down the page – click the image to download the correct medical certificate. Please attach the medical certificate to the form below or download a referral form and forward the completed form to Williams Occupational Therapy.
DOWNLOAD THE REFERRAL FORM HERE
Referral to Williams Occupational Therapy for a practical driver assessment will see that your patient is treated with the utmost respect and empathy. At Williams OT we pride ourselves on providing a quality assessment, with clear and concise outcomes to determine medical fitness to drive for your patient. Our assessment will generate a report with step-by-step recommendations for you as the medical practitioner/ specialist or health professional to follow.
Furthermore, your patient will be guided through the assessment process and provided support to follow through with the recommendations generated from the referral and assessment. Williams OT offers lessons, rehabilitation specific to driving, vehicle modifications, and more. You can rest assured that your patient will have the safest and most practical outcomes for their condition.
If you have the possibility of clients in the future that may be in need of an occupational therapy driver assessment or rehabilitation program, please sign up for our e-newsletter where you will be able to keep up to date with current information. By signing up to our e-newsletter, you will receive a free referral pathway information pack and an invitation to a free online QandA session. Here you can ask questions about your situation and find out more information specific to your needs. You can sign up by filling out the form here.
General Practitioners
According to the “Assessing Fitness to Drive” guidelines (2012), in most circumstances, assessment of medical fitness to drive for private and commercial vehicles can be conducted by a General Practitioner followed by notification to the SLA. General practitioners can also generate referrals to medical specialist or referral for a practical driving assessment when the answer is not able to be determined in a consulting room.
Medical and Surgical Specialists
“Assessing Fitness to Drive” guidelines (2012) highlight when Medical and Surgical Specialists are required to make recommendations regarding fitness to drive in their field of expertise, compared to a treating doctor. A referral for a specialist may be required following acute onset, change of a chronic condition, or to recommend when reinstatement of a driver’s licence is warranted following medical suspension.
Medical Certificates
Click on image to download
Eye Certificate
Heavy Vehicle
Light Vehicle
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