Academic literature on the topic 'Pioneer occupational therapist'

Background. The Canadian history of our profession is not well known and our identity is thought to suffer as a result. Helen Primrose LeVesconte (1896–1982) is one pioneer in our development whose story has not been told. Purpose. Our purpose is to explore LeVesconte's life and work in order to expand knowledge of our roots and thereby strengthen our identity. Method. Using interpretive biography methods we draw on LeVesconte's own writings, articles written about her, and archival documents to describe turning point moments in her life and to display meaningful patterns in her work. Results. LeVesconte's work as a clinician and her role and reputation as an educator, show her to have been a strong and visionary leader. Her views on the client's role, the importance of the therapist-client relationship, prevention, community-based programs, and vocational rehabilitation are of particular interest. Practice Implications. Because LeVesconte educated over 1,850 students while director of the occupational therapy program at the University of Toronto, her influence has been felt throughout the country. Her perspective is compared to current practice; and questions are raised as to aspects of her legacy and philosophy that might now be reconsidered.

The first occupational therapy course in Malta came to an end in October 1987. This article reviews the developments in the third year, prior to the emergence, in the island's health field, of the pioneer group of locally qualified occupational therapists.

Purpose Major gaps exist in the documented history of occupational therapy in Ireland. The purpose of this paper is to contribute to filling these gaps by providing an overview of three major transitions in Irish occupational therapy in the century preceding the opening of St. Joseph?s College of Occupational Therapy in 1963. Research on occupational therapy’s past is valuable not only for recording and commemorating key events and individuals but also for allowing reflection on and questioning of contemporary practice and assumptions. Design/methodology/approach This descriptive paper draws on multiple documentary sources to present an overview of the first 100 years of the use of occupation as therapy/occupational therapy in Ireland from 1863 to 1963. Findings Three major transitions in occupational therapy in Ireland are presented: from moral treatment and the use of occupation as therapy to medical patronage of occupational therapy, from medical patronage to the early/pre-professional era and finally from the pre-professional era to the era of professionally qualified occupational therapists. To illustrate these transitions, a small number of individuals and their contributions are discussed including Dr Eamon O’Sullivan, Dr Ada English, Donal Kelly, Olga Gale and Ann Beckett. Originality/value This paper charts the foundations upon which the currently thriving profession of occupational therapy are built. The Association of Occupational Therapists of Ireland recently celebrated their 50th anniversary (AOTI, 2015a), and in 2017, it is 100 years since occupational therapy was formalised in Clifton Springs, New York, USA. Occupational therapy is a relatively young profession, and great opportunities exist to research its history in Ireland to capture the memories and experiences of the pioneers who laid the foundation of the profession as well as to situate the development of the profession in the broader social, cultural and scientific contexts within which it developed.

The name of Sigmund Freud is synonymous with psychiatry. Like many other pioneers who were deeply engrossed in their work, he suffered from the subject matter that he was dealing with. This article looks at some of the main psychological problems encountered by Freud in mid-life and how an occupational therapist could have helped him.

This paper describes the contribution of an occupational therapist to a comprehensive assessment programme for families with physically abused children. Initially, a brief outline of the entire programme is set out. In the light of this, an approach to residential family assessment, pioneered by occupational therapy in the West Norfolk and Wisbech health district, is described in detail.

Clinical experience is an essential component of therapist education and training schools are the first to acknowledge the contribution of the clinical supervisor. The Salford School has pioneered both first and second generation Diploma 1981 courses and the article suggests ways in which training schools can promote and encourage an integrated approach to professional training, by ‘bridging the gap’ to the clinical supervisor.

Background Occupational therapy (OT) is a vital service that supports older adults’ ability to age in place. Given the barriers to accessing care, video telehealth is a means of providing OT. Even within Veterans Health Administration (VHA), a pioneer in telehealth, video telehealth by OT practitioners to serve older adults is not well understood. Objective This study examines VHA OT practice using video telehealth with older veterans using an implementation framework. Methods A web-based national survey of VHA OT practitioners conducted between September and October 2019 contained a mix of mostly closed questions with some open-text options. The questions were developed using the Promoting Action on Research Implementation in Health Services model with input from subject matter experts. The questions gathered the extent to which VHA OT practitioners use video telehealth with older veterans; are comfortable with video telehealth to deliver specific OT services; and, for those using video telehealth with older veterans, the barriers, facilitators of change, and perceived benefits of video telehealth. Results Of approximately 1455 eligible VHA OT practitioners, 305 participated (21.0% response rate). Most were female (196/259, 75.7%) occupational therapists (281/305, 92.1%) with a master’s degree (147/259, 56.8%) and 10 years or fewer (165/305, 54.1%) of VHA OT practice. Less than half (125/305, 41.0%) had used video telehealth with older veterans, and users and nonusers of video telehealth were demographically similar. When asked to rate perceived comfort with video telehealth to deliver OT services, participants using video telehealth expressed greater comfort than nonusers, which was significant for 9 of the 13 interventions: activities of daily living (P<.001), instrumental activities of daily living (P=.004), home safety (P<.001), home exercise or therapeutic exercise (P<.001), veteran or caregiver education (P<.001), durable medical equipment (P<.001), assistive technology (P<.001), education and work (P=.04), and wheelchair clinic or seating and positioning (P<.001). More than half (74/125, 59.2%) of those using video telehealth reported at least one barrier, with the most frequently endorsed being Inadequate space, physical locations and related equipment. Most (92/125, 73.6%) respondents using video telehealth reported at least one facilitator, with the most frequently endorsed facilitators reflecting respondent attitudes, including the belief that video telehealth would improve veteran access to care (77/92, 84%) and willingness to try innovative approaches (76/92, 83%). Conclusions Most VHA OT survey respondents had not used video telehealth with older veterans. Users and nonusers were demographically similar. Differences in the percentages of respondents feeling comfortable with video telehealth for specific OT interventions suggest that some OT services may be more amenable to video telehealth. This, coupled with the primacy of respondent beliefs versus organizational factors as facilitators, underscores the need to gather clinicians’ attitudes to understand how they are driving the implementation of video telehealth.

ABSTRACTIntroductionThe Security Force Assistance Brigades (SFABs) are specialized units designed to strengthen allied and partnered nations through advising, supporting, liaising, and assessing in support of U.S. national security interests and combatant commanders’ war fighting objectives. As the 1st SFAB was the pioneer unit, descriptive analysis of the musculoskeletal injures and body regions occurring before, during, and after deployment was previously unavailable, limiting the ability of embedded holistic health and fitness teams to proactively address the unit’s musculoskeletal needs and medical readiness.Materials and MethodsPhysical therapists collected and retrospectively analyzed data from 4597 encounters over 19 months: 4 months before, 9 months during, and 4 months after deployment using descriptive statistics.ResultsPhysical therapy encounters averaged 124 per month during pre-deployment preparation, 363 per month during deployment, and 206 per month post-deployment. The most common musculoskeletal injuries identified during pre-deployment were to the lumbar spine (31.8%), knee (18.1%), and shoulder (9.1%). The most common areas of injury during deployment were to the lumbar spine (28.4%), thoracic spine (18.3%), and shoulder (14.0%). The most common post-deployment injuries consulted were to the lumbar spine (21.3), shoulder (19.6%), and knee (17.8%).ConclusionMusculoskeletal injuries are a concern that may limit medical readiness in the SFABs in the time of before, during, and after deployment. Low back pain is the primary musculoskeletal injury of the 1st SFAB throughout the entire deployment cycle. Based on these findings, recommendations include embedding injury prevention programs to address low back pain to improve medical readiness. More research is required to assess the effectiveness of these programs in reducing incidents of musculoskeletal injuries before, during, and after deployment cycles.