"It's first important to understand why the patient doesn't want to participate. If they are not feeling well or are in pain, it's important to notify the nurse or doctor and never force the session. You can always offer to reschedule an appointment. If a patient refuses for a behavioural or emotional reason, sometimes there are effective techniques to persuade them to participate, but again we never force them. Oftentimes, new patients are reluctant to participate because they don't know or trust the therapist or don't understand the benefit to them of the therapy sessions. I overcome this by introducing myself and taking a non-aggressive approach. I don't tell them what they must do but rather try to help them understand why doing the activity will benefit them, and I give them choices to empower them. For example, I may provide two options that would benefit them and allow them to choose which one they would like to start with. This often builds rapport and increases their buy-in to participate in therapy services."
