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PubMed1995

Mentorship experiences in a group of occupational therapy leaders.

OBJECTIVES: The development of occupational therapy leaders is a long-held goal of many members of the American Occupational Therapy Association and of state associations. The initiation of mentor programs is a common means to accomplish this goal. These programs take time and effort, and, although occupational therapists have described how mentorship programs work in the literature, there are few articles that describe the actual mentorship experiences of occupational therapy leaders. METHOD: To study the experiences of elected occupational therapy leaders, a 30-item questionnaire was distributed at the annual meeting of the Committee of State Association Presidents and completed by 53 respondents. Results were analyzed, and cross tabulations were run between selected items. RESULTS: Respondents were frequently exposed to role models, were assisted by sponsors, were mentored by other occupational therapists, and served as mentors themselves. There was little evidence that the respondents were mentored by high-powered individuals who helped launch their careers. CONCLUSION: More than half of the respondents were mentored by other occupational therapists, and only 29% of the respondents reported that they surpassed the status and position of their mentors. Plans to initiate mentorship programs should include activities that promote powerful leaders who move beyond the status and position of their mentors, so that occupational therapists can represent the interests of the profession to others.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Occupational therapy using a sensory integrative approach for children with developmental disabilities.

This article provides an introduction and overview of sensory integration theory as it is used in occupational therapy practice for children with developmental disabilities. This review of the theoretical tenets of the theory, its historical foundations, and early research provides the reader with a basis for exploring current uses and applications. The key principles of the sensory integrative approach, including concepts such as "the just right challenge" and "the adaptive response" as conceptualized by A. Jean Ayres, the theory's founder, are presented to familiarize the reader with the approach. The state of research in this area is presented, including studies underway to further delineate the subtypes of sensory integrative dysfunction, the neurobiological mechanisms of poor sensory processing, advances in theory development, and the development of a fidelity measure for use in intervention studies. Finally, this article reviews the current state of the evidence to support this approach and suggests that consensual knowledge and empirical research are needed to further elucidate the theory and its utility for a variety of children with developmental disabilities. This is especially critical given the public pressure by parents of children with autism and other developmental disabilities to obtain services and who have anecdotally noted the utility of sensory integration therapy for helping their children function more independently. Key limiting factors to research include lack of funding, paucity of doctorate trained clinicians and researchers in occupational therapy, and the inherent heterogeneity of the population of children affected by sensory integrative dysfunction. A call to action for occupational therapy researchers, funding agencies, and other professions is made to support ongoing efforts and to develop initiatives that will lead to better diagnoses and effective intervention for sensory integrative dysfunction, which will improve the lives of children and their families.

Child↗
PubMed2005

Exploring recruitment strategies to hire occupational therapists.

BACKGROUND: Recruitment issues in occupational therapy have been a long-standing concern for the profession. PURPOSE: This descriptive study explored the strategies currently being used by employers to recruit occupational therapists for employment purposes. METHOD: An 18-item survey was mailed to 251 sites where occupational therapists work in Alberta and Saskatchewan. RESULTS: There was a 64% response rate and data from 130 surveys were analyzed. The results indicate that employers continue to rely on a wide variety of strategies for advertising and recruiting, the most prevalent being word of mouth, postings at universities, and providing student fieldwork placements. In turn, the most effective recruitment strategies were listed as word of mouth, advertising in the general media, and providing student fieldwork placements. Various examples of financial incentives offered by employers were also listed. Many participants identified recent changes in recruitment strategies such as making a move towards web site job postings. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS. The results suggest strategies for employers to target for recruiting occupational therapists and illustrate to both employers and students the importance of fieldwork in recruitment and hiring.

Advertising↗
PubMed1991

[Fatty acids in erythrocyte membranes and the status of lipid peroxidation in painters].

Spectrographic studies of fat acids in erythrocytic membranes and lipid peroxidation (LPO) contributed to the identification of different phases in the formation of damage effects. Exposition to toxic complexes (mostly solvents) in the first year caused a predominant growth of the antioxidant systems' activity characteristic of the processes of adaptation. In case with the work duration from one to five years, the u saturated fat acid content growth was accompanied by both pro- and antioxidative processes, which was indicative of the compensatory nature of the revealed changes. The most vivid shifts in the LPO reactions and the fat acids' content in erythrocytic membranes were found in the occupational group of patients engaged in the profession for more than 5 years. Those included major changes in the spectrum of both saturated and unsaturated acids, LPO activation with concomitant depression of the antioxidative systems.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Occupational therapy's link to vocational reeducation, 1910-1925.

The development of occupational therapy is rooted in early 20th century medical reform. During the early 1910s, several members of the medical profession, human service workers, and the larger American society were increasingly disturbed by medical practices that did not consider the individual's personal experience of disability. Occupational therapy was developed, in part, out of this desire to provide persons with treatment that helped them to function in their communities despite their disability. Early occupational therapy leaders envisioned the fledgling profession as a societal service capable of assisting persons with disabilities to return to both work and community life. Vocational reeducation was initially considered to be an integral component of occupational therapy in the years from 1910 to 1920. However, the profession's early link to vocational reduction was challenged by vocational technical trainers during World War I. To prevent occupational therapy from being subsumed by vocational technical training, the early occupational therapy leaders implemented several strategies: adoption of physician prescription for all occupational therapy services, delivery of occupational therapy services primarily within hospital settings, and dissociation from vocational reeducation services. Reasons accounting for why the early occupational therapy leaders abandoned their initial commitment to vocational reeducation are explored. Suggestions about how this decision has affected present-day practice are also offered.

Persons with Disabilities↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Professional strategies in work-related practice: an exploration of occupational and physical therapy roles and approaches.

Both occupational and physical therapy have historical roots in worker rehabilitation; however, the core philosophies and areas of expertise of these professions suggest there may be inherent differences in the ways each approaches therapeutic intervention. This study surveyed 600 occupational and physical therapists in the United States to determine the nature and scope of work-related practice, and the degree to which occupation-based strategies are used by either profession. The overall response rate was 54% (n = 324), and 76% of respondents (n = 246) were actively engaged in providing work-related services. Results indicate that both professions provide all services commonly associated with work-related therapy in almost equal proportions. Few significant differences were identified between the professions in terms of approaches to therapy, and findings did not reveal the use of occupation-based interventions to any greater degree by occupational therapists.

Humans↗
PubMed1996

The value of studying occupation: an example with primate play.

The purpose of this article is to demonstrate the value of a constraint-free study of occupation to occupational therapy. Constraint-free study refers to interdisciplinary scholarly inquiry that seeks to generate a deep understanding of how important occupations influence adaptation and health. Drawing on knowledge from animal behavior, anthropology, evolutionary biology, psychology, and primatology, primate play is discussed. Such knowledge enhances understanding of therapeutic play contexts and of play's integrative impact on occupational performance. Moreover, a robust understanding of vital occupations, such as play, empowers practitioners, thereby reducing the profession's vulnerability to external forces that diminish its economic and political position in the health care market. Precedents within and outside occupational therapy are described whereby control over the acquisition of basic knowledge has proven to be beneficial. It is concluded that both occupational therapy and occupational science will strongly benefit from their shared commitment to understanding the complexities of occupation.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

Health personnel: perceived differences in professional relationships and work role.

This study questions the validity of the assumption that the workplace culture and experiences of health personnel are largely similar. The study compares nurses, occupational therapists, physiotherapists and speech therapists concerning their perceptions of professional issues within their own profession, and their perceptions of professional issues within the medical profession. Respondents completed a questionnaire containing 55 items referring to their own profession, and 55 items referring to the medical profession. Six scales were derived from the large survey instrument addressing issues regarding status/cohesiveness of the profession, professional relationships, and the role of the patient in health delivery in the respondent's profession, and in the medical profession. Nurses emerged as different to other health personnel on most dimensions. Few differences emerged among allied health professionals. Physiotherapists were more positive than occupational therapists about the status/cohesiveness of their profession, and regarded the contributions of the patient to health delivery as less important. Speech therapists did not differ significantly from occupational therapists on any dimension.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Work-related stress and occupational therapy.

Occupational stress and burnout have been studied extensively in the human services. It has been suggested that healthcare professionals in particular are at risk of stress owing to the caring nature of their work. Articles related to occupational therapy and work-related stress were reviewed in regard to practice in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States and Sweden. Although the empirical literature is relatively weak for occupational therapy, it has been argued that occupational therapists in health care share risk factors with other healthcare professionals. These risk factors include repeated exposure to distress and difficult behaviour, prolonged interventions and uncertain outcome. Issues such as professional status, staffing issues and the nature of the profession have been identified as additional risk factors for occupational therapists. However, empirical studies that enable burnout rates of occupational therapists to be compared with those of related occupational groups suggest that this may not be the case. Occupational therapists may in fact be protected from some stress and burnout factors. Further research is recommended to clarify the nature of stress experienced by occupational therapists and to identify both risk and protective factors characteristic of the profession.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2006

An argument for pragmatism as a foundational philosophy of occupational therapy.

BACKGROUND: In 1986, Estelle Breines argued that occupational therapy identity problems could be resolved by acquiring tools that enable therapists to analyze their profession in a sophisticated manner. Breines identified philosophical inquiry as one of these tools. PURPOSE: This study examined how pragmatism can provide a philosophical framework for occupational therapy practice and knowledge. METHOD: An analysis of a sample of occupational therapy literature, philosophy of pragmatism literature, and Slagle lectures delivered between 1955 and 1995 was completed. Themes underlying the assumptions, principles, and values articulated in the literature and the Slagle lectures were identified and compared. RESULTS: Findings of the analysis indicate that some of the core assumptions, principles, and values of occupational therapy as identified in occupational therapy literature and the Slagle lectures are conceptually consistent with those of the philosophy of pragmatism. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Pragmatism may provide a philosophical framework to organize the knowledge and practice of occupational therapy and assist with clarifying the profession's identity.

Humans↗
PubMed1996

Dentistry on the couch.

This article outlines some of the occupational stresses in dental practice. In a profession which combines skillful precision with aesthetics many dentists are vulnerable to stress-yet most practitioners minimize or deny the suggestion that they face "burn-out'. Regular seminars on pressures pertaining to dental practice would provide support to practitioners (at risk).

Burnout, Professional↗
PubMed1987

Is nursing a profession? Results of a Missouri study.

This article examines the question of whether or not nursing is or should be a profession. The conclusion is based primarily on an analysis of what constitutes a profession and an empirical study of some nursing practices and attitudes. The analysis of professions recognizes three prominent models in sociology: trait, functional, and power or control. It bypasses these in favor of a "cluster concept," which asserts that the public has a number of expectations of an occupation before it will bestow the status of profession upon it. We then give an analysis of some of the results of the survey of a sample of Missouri registered nurses. The gist of the data is said to reflect the facts that these nurses think nursing is or should be a profession, but that other factors tend to show that nursing lacks the requisite cluster to substantiate the claim to be a profession. We conclude that nursing should perhaps not be a profession since it has been a bastion of the "ethics of compassion" in a world that is increasingly beset by an "ethics of competence."

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed1999

[Pilot study on hairdresser eczema].

From 1990 to 1992 the allergy profile of 1042 prospective hairdressers (personal and family history, atopic skin, serum IgE, patch and prick tests) was determined and their occupational suitability was evaluated. Up to 1997 a follow up of 375 hairdressers was obtained by way of questionnaires, re-examination, official reports and expert opinions of the social accident insurance. The frequency of initial eczema was 30%. A change of occupation on account of hairdresser eczema was documented in 11%. The prognostic evaluation of occupational suitability proved to be unsatisfactory. In this longitudinal study, the frequency of pre-occupational skin symptoms increased from 13 to 18%. The other atopic criteria indicated no uniform tendency. There was a significant increase in nickel allergy from 18.7 to 45.5% resulting partly from sensitization after entering the occupation and partly from an increase in nickel allergy at time of entry. Both atopic skin and pre-occupational nickel allergy increase the risk of hairdresser eczema, it is not so great as to justify dissuading such young people from entering the profession.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Occupational health nursing practice in the United Kingdom: the European influence.

Legislation introduced by the European Parliament has markedly affected the practice, education, and training of occupational health nurses. New health and safety legislation requires occupational health nurses to demonstrate and prove their competence to perform certain duties. The statutory body must create, for the first time, a definition of an occupational health nurse. A special body has been established to produce standard vocational qualifications for all workers. Occupational health nurses are the first members of the nursing profession to be involved in the process.

European Union↗
PubMed2004

What's ailing us? Prevalence and type of long-term disabilities among an insured cohort of orthodontists.

Occupational health risks are present in every profession. This article reviews 4 commonly mentioned conditions that might be health risks in orthodontics and dentistry--musculoskeletal problems, carpal tunnel syndrome, dermatoses and allergies, and psychosocial problems--and compares the reported prevalence rates with data from the American Association of Orthodontists Long-Term Disability Insurance Plan. There is an estimated 3.56% prevalence of long-term disability among orthodontists. The expected and actual specific conditions affecting orthodontists could differ from those of the general public or of general dentists and do not appear to equate with self-reported surveys. Suggestions for improved reporting are made. Orthodontists appear to be quite healthy compared with other insured populations and the general public. Most long-term disabilities among orthodontists appear to be chronic illnesses and not repetitive injuries or specific occupational hazards.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome↗
PubMed1988

Men in occupational therapy.

The purpose of this study was to identify the characteristics of male occupational therapists so that better strategies for recruiting men into the profession can be developed and the problem of retaining men in the field can be addressed. Male occupational therapists were surveyed at 3-year intervals, in 1978, 1982, and 1985. Our survey results were compared with results of the 1969 American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) Member Data Survey reported by Jantzen (1973), the 1982 AOTA Member Data Survey, and an unpublished study by Watson (1983). The number of professional occupational therapists almost tripled from 1970 to 1985, whereas the increase in the proportion of men was only from 3.9% to 5%. The study showed that as a group, male occupational therapists today are younger, more likely to have advanced degrees, and less likely to be married than their 1969 counterparts. Additional data included employment data, educational data, and demographic information such as family position, education and occupation of parents, extracurricular activities in high school and college, factors influencing career choice, and goals for the future.

Educational Status↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Our journey together.

These three challenges of political activism, public awareness, and patient advocacy were met through a broad range of activities by many committed AOTA members. During the past 3 years, our membership has grown, our number of educational programs at the professional, technical, and postprofessional levels has dramatically increased, and our visibility as a profession has bloomed. Promotion of the benefits of occupational therapy to society is in evidence throughout the land and throughout the world. My heartfelt thanks go to all the Executive Board members, the state presidents, the representatives and National Office staff for their active partnership with our members, making these achievements for the profession possible. As our journey together takes on a new relationship, Nikolai Gogol provides us with a final thought: And for a long time yet, led by some wondrous power, I am fated to journey hand in hand with my strange heroes and to survey the surging immensity of life, to survey it through the laughter all can see and through the tears unseen and unknown by anyone (1842/1961 no page number available).

Occupational Therapy↗