Occupational Therapy Theory and Practice

At the end of this course, students should be able to: 1. describe the foundations of occupational therapy and explain various theories and frames of references of Occupational therapy; 2. analyse, synthesise, and apply models of occupational performance; 3. apply theories that underlie the practice of occupational therapy; 4. use theories, models of practice, and frames of reference to guide and inform evaluation and intervention; 5. analyse and discuss how occupational therapy history, occupational therapy theory, and the sociopolitical climate influence practice; 6. compare and contrast models of practice and frames of reference that are used in occupational therapy; 7. apply theoretical constructs to evaluation and intervention with various types of clients in a variety of practice contexts and environments to analyze and effect meaningful occupation outcomes; 8. discuss the process of theory development and its importance to occupational therapy; 9. utilise national and international resources in making assessment or intervention choices; and 10. appreciate the influence of international occupational therapy contributions to education, research, and practice.

Major models of practice in occupational therapy that guide practice. Exploration of how theory supports these models as guides to evaluation and intervention decisions. Occupational therapy theory development. Importance of theory in clinical decision making. Developing a strong occupational therapy professional identity. Theoretical perspectives commonly used in occupational therapy practice with a focus on the occupation-based models. Comparison and contrast of theoretical perspectives and their application to occupational therapy assessment and treatment planning for clients with a variety of occupational needs. Knowledge and skills necessary for the assessments of patients leading to identification of occupational dysfunction. Theory and techniques for measuring physical and physiological entities such as vital signs, strength, muscle tone, joint range of motion, respiratory capacity, circulatory status, pain, balance, posture, gait, and coordination. Importance of precision of measurement, elimination of errors in testing, validity and reliability, and accurate documentation. Critical review of models and outcome measures used by Occupational therapists with a focus on reliability, validity, specificity and sensitivity of the tests. The educational experiences in this course will be designed to progress from normal to pathological across the spectra of age, gender, and race. The relevance and application of functional outcome research in clinical practice will be discussed. The process and principle of producing and keeping records of OT referral, assessment, intervention, and outcomes will be discussed.