GOAL!!!
Goal setting is one of the most important facets of rehabilitation; it helps stakeholders to navigate their way through the rehabilitation process. Goals direct therapists on what interventions to employ, keep clients accountable, and most importantly provide reasons for celebration! Because, at the end of the day, what is life if not a party?
It is very important to exercise prudence when it comes to goal setting, because a poorly set goal could easily cascade into poor rehab outcomes. Pervading the education, finance and health industries at the moment is the idea of SMART goals. A nifty tool that’s used to set calculated goals that foster achievement and progress.
The clever acronym stands for:
Specific - goals that are clear and concrete make it easier for stakeholders to focus their efforts.
E.g. “I want to be able to walk my daughter down the aisle on her wedding day”
Measurable - goals that can be objectively measured are easier to track. Being able to track their progress may help stakeholders stay motivated throughout the rehab process.
E.g. “I want to be able to walk my daughter down the aisle on her wedding day. The aisle will be 15m long.”
Achievable - it’s important to be realistic when setting goals to give oneself the best chance of success. This is where clinicians play a big role. Granted we can never be sure how much a patient will recover, but our experience and knowledge of pathophysiology should enable us to determine whether a goal is beyond reach or not. Besides, we can always aim higher once all the low hanging fruit have been picked.
Relating to our previous example, it may be unrealistic for our client to expect to be able to walk his daughter down the aisle if he is currently bed bound. A more appropriate goal may be “to be able to attend my daughters wedding in a wheelchair”.
Relevant - goals must be relevant to the circumstances of the primary stakeholder, otherwise time would be wasted on pursuing a goal that has nothing to do with their treatment priorities.
For instance, our client would be setting an irrelevant goal of wishing to walk his daughter down the aisle if he doesn’t have any problems walking. Instead he should focus on addressing other impairments that may be impacting his function.
Time-bound - A goal without a defined timeframe could easily leave opportunities open for procrastination. A sure way to keep stakeholders focused and motivated is to set a deadline.
E.g “I want to be able to walk my daughter down the aisle on her wedding day in 6 months time. The aisle will be 15m long.”
True is the axiom “failure to plan is planning to fail”. Most people who struggle to achieve their goals can attribute their failure to a miscalculation during the goal setting process, which can be a difficult task in and of itself. Give yourself the best chance of success by trusting your therapist and setting SMART goals.
