Occupational Therapy In Canada Research Articles

Indigenous Peoples and Occupational Therapy in Canada: A scoping review.

Background. Calls to Action outlined by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) necessitate critical reflection and urgent action to improve occupational therapy with Indigenous Peoples in Canada. Purpose. This scoping review aims to synthesize the literature related to Indigenous Peoples and occupational therapy practice, research, and education in Canada, and appraise empirical research using adapted Indigenous Health Research criteria. Method. A scoping review was conducted across published academic and grey literature with additional appraisal of empirical studies. Findings. A total of 6 themes emerged from 47 articles spanning from 1970 to 2020: recognizing colonial history, responding to the TRC, participating in personal and professional reflection, identifying Western ideologies, engaging in partnership in practice, and recognizing social and systemic barriers. Empirical studies met appraisal criteria inconsistently. Implications. To meaningfully engage in reconciliation, the profession of occupational therapy must generate Indigenous-led and relevant research, critically transform curricula, and address tensions between themes in practice.

Occupational therapy in the Fourth Industrial Revolution

Background.While occupational therapy’s inception was from the Arts and Crafts movement and the moral treatment movement with war veterans, the profession has evolved to requiring a professional entry-level master’s degree to practice, and involves complex relationships with clients across the life span. Throughout history, a consistent impact of each industrial revolution has been the loss of jobs to automation. This consequence is even more profound today with the exponential growth of innovations and automation.Purpose.The objectives of this article are to (a) set the context by reviewing the evolution, or five eras, of occupational therapy in Canada; (b) present what is meant by the “Fourth Industrial Revolution”; and (c) examine the technological innovations faced by occupational therapists and our clients as we enter the “sixth” era of occupational therapy in Canada.Key Issues.Although occupational therapy, as a profession, has low risk for automation, a great number of our clients will not be able to reskill fast enough to keep up with job market requirements. Telerehabilitation, the Internet of Things, virtual reality, 3-D printing, robotics, artificial intelligence, and autonomous vehicles are challenging ways occupational therapists provide services to clients.Implications.It is recommended that occupational therapists engage with disciplines beyond current typical connections, as our expertise is called upon to advocate for ourselves and our clients who are end users of these technologies.

The entry-level occupational therapy clinical doctorate: The next education wave of change in Canada?

Currently, Canada and the United States are the only two countries that mandate entry to the occupational therapy profession at the master's level. There was a recommendation considered by the American Occupational Therapy Association that by 2025 all education programs would move to the clinical doctorate level. In August 2015, the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education made the formal decision that for now, the entry-level qualification for occupational therapists in the United States will remain at both the master's and clinical doctorate levels. This article presents an overview of the types of doctorates available, the pros and cons of moving to the clinical doctorate, and some potential questions that will need to be considered. Is the next step in the educational progression of occupational therapy in Canada the entry-level clinical doctorate? What are the potential implications for the profession, our clients, and funders? Further discourse and investigation of this issue is needed.

Forensic Occupational Therapy in Canada: The Current State of Practice.

Although occupational therapists have been practicing in forensic settings for many years, there is a paucity of literature regarding the nature of this practice in Canada. The purpose of this study was to describe the practices of Canadian occupational therapists in forensic mental health. An online survey was designed based on the Canadian Practice Process Framework. Following purposive and snowball sampling, responses were analysed with descriptive statistics and content analysis. Twenty-seven clinicians responded (56% response rate). Respondents indicated commonalities in workplaces, client caseloads and practice challenges. The outstanding need in Canada to demonstrate client outcomes through the use of evaluation instruments reflects those practice gaps identified internationally. Education, advocacy and research are critical areas for the development of Canadian forensic occupational therapy. Although findings heavily reflect one provincial context and may not be generalizable to nonhospital settings, a number of priority areas were identified. Future efforts should clarify the role of forensic occupational therapy to stakeholders, and validate their contributions through research that evaluates intervention efficacy and meaningful outcomes. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Being our own sponsors

EnglishIncluded among six non- physicians were the president of Mount Allison University (whose university had been involved with occupational therapy in World War I), the president of the Quebec Society for Crippled Children (now the Quebec Society for Disabled Children), three prominent Canadian women with connections to occupational therapy, and the preeminent American occupational therapist Eleanor Clarke Slagle. Sponsorship from the elite medical community (and other individuals of high status) paved the way for many of the developments of early occupational therapy in Canada: the founding of provincial societies in the 1920s, the establishment of educational programs at the University of Toronto (first in 1918 and again in 1926), the formation of the CAOT in 1926, and the debut of this journal in 1933. The characteristics of the ward aides of World War I who had shown themselves to be so creative, and entrepreneurial, independent, and self-motivated, venturing into unknown territory at every turn, had somehow become masked. francaisEn 1933, lorsque cette revue a ete publiee pour la premiere fois, il ne semblait pas essentiel que les ergotherapeutes jouent un role de defenseur ou de revendication; l'ACE et la sororite externe assumaient la tache d'expliquer la profession aux medecins, aux membres des conseils d'administration des hopitaux et a la population.

Promoting an occupational perspective in public health

Although the value of occupation for health and well-being is fundamental to the occupational therapy profession, this view is not well recognized in the field of public health. In this article, we argue that occupational therapists have a unique and valuable perspective to bring to the field of public health, particularly with respect to the importance of occupational engagement in promoting the health and well-being of Canadians. There are many compelling reasons for public health advocacy, including the need to increase awareness of the health benefits and risks of occupational engagement for individuals and communities. Challenges that lie ahead, however, include issues related to terminology, the complexity of occupation, the need to consider multidimensional outcomes, and diversity of evidence. To move forward, the profession of occupational therapy in Canada needs to position health promotion messaging in a way that clearly captures the complexity and value of occupation and resonates with Canadians of all ages and abilities.

Book Review: Restoring the Spirit: The Beginnings of Occupational Therapy in Canada, 1890–1930 (2011)

Book Review: Restoring the Spirit: The Beginnings of Occupational Therapy in Canada, 1890–1930 (2011)

Book Review: Restoring the Spirit: The Beginnings of Occupational Therapy in Canada, 1890–1930

Book Review: Restoring the Spirit: The Beginnings of Occupational Therapy in Canada, 1890–1930

Hunter-Gatherers and the Behavioural Ecology of Human Occupation

Despite growing interest in indigenous peoples within occupational therapy in Canada and elsewhere, there has been little consideration of hunter-gathering-an occupation that retains great material and symbolic significance for many indigenous groups. A preliminary analysis of occupational behaviour amongst hunter-gatherers was conducted to aid understanding of the nature and evolution of human occupations and inform policy in indigenous occupational therapy. Human behavioural ecology was used to analyze four aspects of hunter-gatherer occupations: occupational diversification, the sexual "division of labour," the long dependence of juveniles on adult provisioning, and active foraging by postmenopausal women. It was concluded that many occupational adaptations of human foragers can be related to life-history traits, namely slow maturation, long lifespans, weaning before independent feeding, and postmenopausal longevity. Further research will help understand how our hunter-gatherer heritage has affected the evolution of occupational behaviour and to develop program designs using foraging occupations.

Evolving Identities: Thomas Bessell Kidner and Occupational Therapy in the United States

A founder of the National Society for the Promotion of Occupational Therapy, Thomas Bessell Kidner (1866-1932) played a prominent role in the early development of occupational therapy in Canada and the United States. We describe Kidner's early life and how his work using occupations evolved. We then examine ideas and assumptions about occupations as treatment and trace Kidner's involvement through to his leadership role within the American Occupational Therapy Association. Through our analysis of primary and secondary source materials, we have extracted recurring themes and related them across and within the materials to discern Kidner's influence on the profession. From among his many contributions, three areas emerge as particularly relevant to current practice: occupational therapy's role in return to work, relationships with medicine, and the profession's image. Kidner's story gives us a window on our history and an opportunity to see how the profession has evolved.

A Review of Evidence on the Conceptual Elements Informing Client-Centred Practice

Client-centred practice is a central concept in occupational therapy in Canada. Since 1980, Canadian occupational therapy publications have discussed the elements of a client-centred practice approach. The purpose of this paper is to enhance the understanding of key elements of a client-centred approach and to highlight the implications for practice that arise from this discussion. Literature about client-centred practice in health care from 1990 - 2005 was reviewed regarding thoughts and ideas about client-centred practice. The content was analyzed for thematic focus about client-centred practice conceptual ideas and their influence on practice. Thematic conceptual elements emerging from the review include an overarching theme of power, with important underpinning themes of listening and communicating, partnership, choice, and hope. Selected definitions of client-centred practice and the link to best practice provide the context for the presentation of the concepts and recommendations for the implementation of client-centred practice. The paper concludes with a discussion of practice implications through the presentation of questions for therapists to consider as a quick reference tool and suggestions for further research and dialogue concerning client-centred practice.

Muriel Driver Memorial Lecture. Why crafts? Influences on the development of occupational therapy in Canada from 1890 to 1930.

Muriel Driver Memorial Lecture. Why crafts? Influences on the development of occupational therapy in Canada from 1890 to 1930.

Client perspectives on occupational therapy practice: are we truly client-centred?

In Canada, the guidelines for the practice of occupational therapy are named and framed as client-centred. Two in-depth interviews were conducted with clients of mental health services about their experiences with a hospital-based occupational therapy service. These occupational therapy clients described their experiences as prescriptive, and as less than client-centred. With the publication of Enabling occupation: A Canadian occupational therapy perspective (Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists [CAOT], 1997) and an increasingly refined focus on being client-centred, these interviews highlight the challenges of a client-centred practice within the current health care environment. These occupational therapy clients raise issues of importance for occupational therapy. The participants stated that the prescription of 'activity', a lack of choice, and a focus upon the illness as opposed to the individual, served to diminish any collaborative partnership with the client and eliminate the client from any decision-making process. This distancing from the client, in their opinion, served to greatly diminish any therapeutic value of occupation. The participants recommended a greater focus upon occupational choice, consideration of the individual within the client, providing accepting, supportive environments, and using professional expertise on occupation to guide the client towards participation in meaningful occupation. These recommendations are strikingly similar to the most recent guidelines for the client-centred practice of occupational therapy in Canada. A discussion of the implications of these findings for the client-centred practice of occupational therapy is offered.

Validity and community utility of the Canadian Occupational Performance Measure.

This study addressed the validity and community utility of the Canadian Occupational Performance Measure (COPM) (Law et al., 1991; 1994; 1998): a measure that now represents a national standard in clinical practice and research in occupational therapy in Canada. The study employed a crossectional design. Participants for the study were former consumers of occupational therapy services, recruited from the Queen's University catchment area (Kingston, North Bay, Oshawa, Perth, Peterborough). A sample of 61 disabled individuals living in the community were recruited. Each individual was sent a package of self-administered measures including the Satisfaction with Performance Scaled Questionnaire, the Reintegration to Normal Living Index, the Life Satisfaction Questionnaire, and the Perceived Problems List. An interview was also arranged with the project coordinator, which was based on the COPM and the Consumer Utility Questionnaire. Multivariate analyses showed that construct validity was supported; scores on the COPM were significantly related to theoretically related constructs: satisfaction with performance, reintegration to normal living and life satisfaction. In addition, criterion validity was supported. A majority of participants (53%), when asked about problems of daily living, spontaneously reported at least one of the problems raised on the COPM. Community utility was evaluated highly by participants, 75% of whom found the COPM useful in identifying and rating their problems, and 100% of whom reported no problems in understanding the COPM.

The Status of Occupational Therapy in Canada

But first to the past, to 1923 when Norman L. Burnette's article The Status of Occupational Therapy in was published in the Archives of Occupational Therapy. Burnette sets the stage. It is evident in this article that a national emergency prompted action and although it proved to be the first time that Canada faced a period of post-war adjustment of such proportions, it was unfortunately not to be the last. Even when faced with the se rvice delivery problem of the proportions that Burnette describes, he introduces the scientific factor, by calling for research into the effect of occupational therapy. The call for clinical efficacy studies continues to be heard today. faisait face a un ajustement d'apres-guerre, ce n'etait malheureusement pas la derniere. Meme face au probleme de livraison de service qui le confrontait, Burnette a introduit le facteur scientifique, en demandant une recherche sur l'effet de l'ergotherapie. La demande pour des etudes sur l'efficacite clinique est entendu encore aujourd'hui.

The Rehabilitation Era: Friend or Foe

This paper bridges the years between 1950 and 1970 when no one article published in the Canadian Journal of Occupational Therapy captured the trends of the period, the focus of which was rehabilitation. Excerpts from three significant papers published during the period exemplify views being expressed on future trends of occupational therapy in rehabilitation, education and practice. The paper concludes with an observation on the overall effect of the emergence of the rehabilitation movement on occupational therapy in Canada.

Muriel Driver Memorial Lecture 1981: the mists of time.

In honour of the fiftieth anniversary of the first "Convention" held by the Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists (CAOT) in 1931, a brief history of the founding of the CAOT and the early development of the profession in Canada is presented. The early beginnings and activities of the CAOT are traced from its conception during World War 1, through its formation in 1926 to its "coming of age" in 1966. Significant events in the growth of the Association and the practice of occupational therapy in Canada, and the Canadian influence on occupational therapy in Great Britain are outlined. Some issues relevant to yesterday and today are suggested.

Graduate Education the Case of Occupational Therapy

Future manpower trends in occupational therapy in Canada are explored in the context of the history of education in Canada. The need for graduate education for occupational therapists and in occupational therapy itself is examined as it is perceived by occupational therapists and health administrators and physicians concerned with the field. The problems and advantages of graduate education are analysed. The study concludes that of the 2000 occupational therapists expected to be in practice in 1984, an optimal number with master's degrees would be between ten and twenty per cent. The problems of launching graduate programmes during times of financial constraint are discussed and the professional association is advised to take a strong leadership role in order to overcome interprovincial rivalry, and rivalry among universities within provinces. The development of graduate programmes is seen as enabling the profession to make a greater contribution to health care planning and administration and as enabling individuals within the profession to render a higher quality of service, particularly in new, more cost-effective roles.

Me? — Political?

Traditionally, occupational therapists tend to perceive their role as apolitical, geared solely to direct patient service. Discussions and recommendations from the Symposium on Occupational Therapy in Canada suggest that political behaviour is an essential component of modern occupational therapy practice. This apparently antithetical belief is discussed within the perspective of professional development.

A Philosophic View of the History of Occupational Therapy in Canada

In this Centennial year of 1967 we have grown accustomed to shining the spotlight on Canada's history. It is fitting to-day, as we embark upon the deliberations of this conference, to shine our first spotlight on the history of occupational therapy in Canada. This history can be reviewed in three eras, the pre-professional, the neo-professional and the professional era. The first of these, the pre-professional can be dated from about 1860 to the first decade of the twentieth century. It is more difficult to apportion explicitly, the neo-professional era but an arbitrary time lapse of from World War I to World War II will serve as a basis for this discussion. The gradual shift to the professional era can be said to date from the years of World War II to the present. Consider each of these in turn, bearing in mind the advice of two sage men. Nietschze advises us that "man is a bridge between his past and his future" and "that a knowledge of history serves but to help us understand our present and gain the courage to be creative, rising above our heritage and building for the future"." Dr. Samuel W. Hamilton advises us that "Medical history is continuous. Not all that is good in hospital practice is recent nor all that is bad, old." 2 So let us look with clarity at our own history, beginning with Era One.