Preparing for community development practice: A Delphi study of Canadian occupational therapists

Abstract

Many of the competencies identified were relevant to all areas of practice, while others were specific to community development, suggesting a need for specialized education and training in this area. The results provide information that can be used to enhance the preparation of occupational therapists for practice in community development.

A framework for occupational enablement to facilitate social change in community practice

“…Community: Community profile. Knowledge of the community, such as the community's social, economic, and physical characteristics, was identified by Leclair et al (2016) as vital to community development practice. The importance of this contextual information is also emphasized in the framework.…”

“…As occupational therapists working in the community, our focus will remain on occupation-based enablement; that is, the process of making it possible for communities to participate in needed, wanted, or required occupations, which promote health, well-being, and occupational justice. Leclair et al (2016) point out that occupational therapists working in community development contexts need to be able to apply occupational therapy frames of reference and occupation-based models in the community context. At the same time, it may also be necessary for occupational therapists working in these settings to articulate their roles and capabilities to communities to cultivate mutual visions of possibilities and a common understanding of goals.…”

“…Fieldwork education is incorporated into occupational therapy curricula globally, with 1,000 hours of practice education stated as the minimum requirement by the World Federation of Occupational Therapists (2016b). Leclair et al (2016) posit specifically that fieldwork-in addition to academic exposure-in the field of community development practice may contribute to the development of therapists' competencies in this area. In fieldwork education, the emphasis is primarily on the learning outcomes of the student in a "real-world" context.…”

“…Working in a community setting, with communities rather than individuals, requires a different focus for occupational therapists than in more traditional settings. Health promotion, community development, advocacy, and policy literacy are but some of the additional competencies that occupational therapists need to develop to work successfully in this arena (Creek, 2014; Leclair, Ashcroft, Canning, & Lisowski, 2016).…”

“…Occupational therapy in the social field has also received increasing emphasis as a main rather than subsidiary practice area in low- and middle-income countries, such as South Africa, due to its potential to effect social change (Duncan & Alsop, 2006; Guajardo, Kronenberg, & Ramugondo, 2015). However, occupational therapists often do not feel adequately prepared for working in community-based practice settings, in particular, those requiring a community development focus (Lauckner, Krupa, & Paterson, 2011; Leclair et al, 2016; Restall & Ripat, 2008). The need for adequate preparation of occupational therapists to work in community-based practice settings has significant implications for the training of occupational therapists, including the necessity to find efficient educational strategies to develop occupational therapists’ skills and competencies to be able to work effectively with communities.…”