OT AUSTRALIA NSW Conference 2004

21-22 October 2004
Novotel, Brighton-le-Sands, Sydney

Identified and addressed the changes and future challenges for occupational therapy in a continuously transforming environment

Explored practices and creative solutions that occupational therapists are contributing to the communities of which they are part, and

Connected the professional community - embracing diverse work environments and roles, while celebrating our core purpose.

A Macro Approach to Community Health: Understanding the global picture

Trevor Goddard

Trevor's current research interests include community development, community health through corporate activity, corporate social responsibility, community business partnerships and the World Health Organisation and issues of global governance. Trevor is a member of the Carnegie Council on Ethics and International Affairs. His experience as an occupational therapist is within community-based organisations and services. Trevor is a Rotary International Paul Harris Fellow and was awarded a National Australia Day Council Young Australian Achievers Award. Trevor also works with the health program of the International Business Leaders Forum. 

Currently a PhD candidate at the Corporate Citizenship Research Unit, Deakin University, Trevor will share his knowledge of global, national and local directions of community development. This presentation will no doubt stimulate ideas for future directions for occupational therapy as well as providing practice strategies for occupational therapists who are engaging with and participating in communities. Trevor is with the School of Occupational Therapy, Curtin University of Technology, Western Australia.

Creating Occupational Practice

Clare Hocking

Clare Hocking is passionate about occupation. She edits the Journal of Occupational Science, has researched the meaning of food-centred occupations for older women and teaches occupational therapists about occupational practice. She is a co-author of the World Federation of Occupational Therapists' Revised Minimum Standards for the Education of Occupational Therapists, which places occupation as the central concept in designing and teaching students.

Though Clare's own research and writing has had different focuses through the years, attention to bridging scholarship and practice has been an enduring theme. This will be continued in her presentation at the OT AUSTRALIA NSW conference. In part, that presentation will draw on stories of times when Clare felt that she had "got it right" and "made a difference".

Clare has and continues to make significant contributions to the occupational therapy community. Her most recent achievements include being awarded the Frances Rutherford Lecture Award 2004 in New Zealand in honour of the outstanding commitment to occupational therapy in New Zealand, she is currently the editor of the Journal of Occupational Science, a member of the New Zealand Occupational Therapy Board, has recently completed her PhD and is one of the authors of the revised Minimum Standards for the Education of Occupational Therapy. 

Clare is with the School of Occupational Therapy, Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand.

Ecological View of Occupational Therapy

Heather Jensen

Heather's holistic view of the world, which developed while studying her first degree in ecology, has been furthered by her love of travel. It has continued to shape her role as an occupational therapist following her graduation in from Cumberland College of Health Sciences in 1983. 

Heather has worked in a variety of community settings. For a number of years, her focus was on working with adults with intellectual disability to help them develop self-advocacy skills. This was followed by seven years in Central Australia working for Commonwealth Rehabilitation Service and aged and disability services, including provision of an outreach service to Tennant Creek. During the period in Central Australia, Heather conducted the second year of an important pilot project in the Cross Border Region of South Australia, Western Australia and Northern Territory. This project identified ways to provide vocational rehabilitation to people in remote communities.

Currently working at the Centre for Remote Health and as an occupational therapist for Ngaanyatjarra Health Council in Western Australia, Heather is further developing her interest in allied health service delivery in remote Australia.

Transforming Networks and Building Partnerships 

Roma Gaster

Roma has developed expertise in organisational change, management development, training, public speaking and curriculum design. Her success in sales, advertising and marketing spans a diversity of industries including the media, information technology, services and education. Roma's experience in group facilitating, public speaking and executive consulting is based on years of attending and conducting leading edge business and education seminars in Australia, New Zealand, South East Asia and the USA. She travels frequently to research global trends and ideas in education and business.

Roma challenges people to expand their potential by exploring choices to improve their skills and abilities. She achieves exceptional results by using the latest educational techniques which ensure maximum learning and change for all individuals.

Sessions

Thursday 21 October

Allied health mentoring

Becoming actively involved in the local community

Client participation and choice-making

Developing a professional community

Early intervention on the building site

Evidence based private practice

Exploratory Model of Pain and clients’ meaning of pain

Factors influencing the implementation of evidence into practice

Home and community resettlement from acute care

Interactive forum for private practitioners

Intervention following a consumer needs assessment: lifestyle exercise and nutrition program for people with mental illness

Learning and development strategies in NSW Health

Listening to young people

Macro approach to community health

Managers’ job satisfaction

Multidisciplinary teamwork for people with chronic and complex conditions

Networking and building partnerships – skills for individuals

New orientation process for staff and students

Occupational therapy students achieving change in rural and semi-rural communities

Outcome measures for home based rehabilitation

Pain management interventions, assessments and outcome measures

Policy directions – NSW Health, WorkCover, Department Ageing Disability and Home Care

Recruitment and retention

Supervision from policy to practice

Using technology to implement research into practice

Working with Indigenous communities

Friday 22 October

A common fieldwork evaluation tool

Adequacy of current student selection criteria relative to professional competencies required of graduates

Adult handwriting retraining

Aged care self-management

Attracting a diverse student population

Coaching skills for occupational therapists

Creating occupational practice

Creative paediatric best practice – review, consultation, literature, guidelines and implementation

Ecological view of occupational therapy

Effectiveness of paediatric home programs

Exploring and understanding play

Home modifications – information for consumers and the role of consumer organisations

Integrating evaluation and research into practice – screening

International partnerships – India, Romania and the Maldives

Introducing computer drawing technology into practice

Issues in program development - research, implementation and sustainability

Long term effects of forearm support - intensive computer users at conventional desks

Occupational perspectives of practice

Occupational therapy in practice environments creating health, including education, socio-economic status, shelter and peace

Occupational therapy involvement in the emergency care of older people

Opportunities and challenges for private practice

Practical strategies for developing successful and sustainable community programs

Primary health aged care promoting intersectoral collaboration and community partnerships

Project management

Reliability of a clinical tool for measuring play

Research into practice – locating information to improve home modification and maintenance

Respite care for older people who care for younger people with disability

Searching for evidence in paediatrics

Task-based learning

The effectiveness of restraint – finding and using the evidence

Transformation from clinic to outreach

Transforming student attitudes

Using research to select floor surface coatings

Using the Canadian Occupational Performance Measure for program evaluation

Book Of Abstracts and Selected Presentations

Supporting Sponsor

Satchel Sponsor

Exhibitors

ALLERGAN

AUZSPEC

CARE CALL EMERGENCY RESPONSE SERVICE

CORINTH HEALTHCARE

CRS AUSTRALIA

G.T.K. REHAB

HUNTLEIGH HEALTHCARE

INDEPENDENT LIVING SPECIALISTS

INJURY MANAGEMENT & REHABILITATION

IOH – INJURY & OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH

ParaQuad NSW

POSTURITE AUSTRALIA

SAFETY LINK

SPECIALISED WHEELCHAIR COMPANY

UPLIFTING SOLUTIONS

WorkCover NSW

Scientific Program Coordinators

Nicole Geldart

Michelle Hegarty

Scientific Program Committee

Lynne Adamson

Anne Cathers

Cindy Chuan

Sue Dinley

Dawn Piebenga

Michelle Quade (OT AUSTRALIA NSW)

Megan Still

Jamie Travis

Project Officer

Penny Waterson (OT AUSTRALIA NSW)

"State conferences are a great way to keep to up to date with trends, research and outcomes across all areas of practice"
Member response - OT AUSTRALIA NSW Member Survey 2004