INTRODUCTION Occupation-based practice is gaining momentum in the profession of occupational therapy 1,2,3,4,5. This is happening despite the pervasive presence of the biomedical model in most health care settings where South African occupational therapists are employed 6. Occupation-based practice is in its essence holistic, aiming for improved occupational performance 7 ; instead of the impairment-focused biomedical approach to practice. With occupation-based practice and biomedical practice viewing health in different ways, tension often develops between theory and practice 8 , underlying the so-called "academic-practice gap" 1 or theory-practice gap. Occupation-based practice is supported by theory on occupation from occupational science 9,10 , and specifically occupational therapy conceptual models 10 (henceforth referred to as 'models'). These models provide explanations for the interaction of the person with his environment through occupations; providing practitioners with a framework for decision-making around occupation based intervention 10,11,12,13. The application of models in the occupational therapy process requires of and allows practitioners to make use of theory in their decision making. Model use also enhances occupation-based practice, by encouraging practitioners to choose occupation-based outcomes 9 and tools of outcome measurement 9. Explaining practice and the occupational therapy process, which often proves to be a complex and even tedious process, is simplified in that models provide practitioners with a language to do so 14,15. It further holds