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SOCIAL PERCEPTIONS OF OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY: THE STUDENTSВ’ PERSPECTIVE
Abstract
Occupational therapists are specialists who facilitate independence and support participation of their clients in occupations that are personally meaningful to them, in order to enhance their well-being and quality of life. One of the core values which support occupational therapy (OT) practice is viewing the client as someone who acts on the environment. The history of OT at university level in Poland is very short – the teaching of future occupational therapists started only 5 years ago. Persons active in the OT field are thus rarely professionally prepared for their job according to contemporary standards. People commonly do not know who occupational therapist is and how this person can help them. The aim of the study was to collect opinions of OT students about the knowledge of OT in the society and what could be done to improve it, and promote the discipline. The study group consisted of 2nd year students of Occupational Therapy from Poznan University of Medical Sciences who were expected to have good knowledge of their field. A total of 18 students took part in focus groups discussions (FGD), divided in 3 discussion rounds. During FGD following topics were discussed: • general lack of knowledge about OT: mainly people who benefited from OT or their familymembers/caregivers are familiar with it; OT in Poland is also regarded as part of balneotherapy, • wrong perspective of OT: it is viewed as just passing time, or do some needlework or handicrafts, • needs of change: campaign for the awareness of OT; professional teaching, so that persons who benefit from well-performed OT be its ambassadors; formal introduction of OT to the healthcare system and professional certification. In conclusion: an educational campaign is necessary to change the perspective of OT in Poland. Also, lawmakers as well as social and health policy makers need to be involved, as OT is an important component of the comprehensive and holistic approach to the client.
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