Implementation and Outcomes of an Education Focused Professional Development Series for Occupational Therapy Practitioners

Abstract

As new educational programs emerge and student enrollment increases, the demand for new academicians, fieldwork educators, and capstone mentors is growing rapidly within the occupational therapy (OT) profession. Academic programs must prepare practitioners to teach and supervise their students who will become OTs and occupational therapy assistants (OTA). In conjunction with the state OT association, one university doctoral OT program created and implemented a free education-focused professional development series for community partners who were interested in developing their teaching knowledge and skills. The series covered unique aspects of OT and OTA education: fieldwork, the doctoral capstone experience and project, and how to become an academic educator. In total, 131 participants attended the three-part professional development series: 10% attended all three sessions, 12% attended two sessions, and 78% attended just one session. A post course evaluation found the majority of participants agreed they will apply the information learned into their practice, they valued the free professional development opportunities, and they were interested in attending future professional development opportunities. Participants had a high level of agreement that they achieved the specific learning objectives of the course. Not only did the community partners find the sessions to be beneficial, but the university OT program noted benefits to hosting it, with 83% of the participants reporting wanting to take a capstone student and 73% reporting a desire to become an academic educator. The purpose of this educational innovation article is to disseminate the content, objectives, and outcomes of the professional development series, in addition to sharing implications for OT and OTA educational programs.