World OT day - October 27th.

"The World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT) is the international voice of the occupational therapy profession which globally is made up of 69 national occupational therapy professional organisations. WFOT World Occupational Therapy Day is the opportunity to heighten the visibility of the profession’s development work and to promote the activities of WFOT locally and nationally. " - WFOT.org

(OT Week in the UK is 7-13 November 2011)

There is some amazing things going on for it too, such as the OT4OT event(http://ot4ot.com/). 

This is an event created by 6 OTs from different countries, using the 'Pay it forward' concept, from the film of the same title, providing a free 24 hour virtual exchange in celebration of the event.  Free one hour long presentations, or webinars(web seminars :P) on a wide and varying range of subjects, including laughter and humour in Occupational Therapy, OT in the recent earthquake zones and OT's role in cancer survivorship.

 I cannot wait for the presentations, I think this is a fantastic use of virtual media as a way of promoting the profession as well as sharing knowledge throughout the world, from different backgrounds and practice experiences. I know there's been a lot in the media about the antisocial use of networking sites (especially focused on younger people) etc, however this is a fantastic example of how it can be used in a positive way. A great pool of inspiring resources for students and qualified professionals alike, I certainly will be following and joining in with the discussion using the #ot24vx hashtag on Twitter.

This global learning opportunity demonstrates the importance of virtual networking, highlighting it's importance in the profession, and the direction that communication is taking - And I for one am ready and willing to embrace it!!

What does occupational therapy mean for me? 

• It's the reward of knowing you have helped someone to regain confidence and control over their everyday activities.
• It's the forest Green trousers/detailing on the uniform that distinguishes us from other health care professionals.
• It's the Holistic approach we take - viewing the client as a whole person, and not a condition, illness or disability.
• We are the pro-active problem solvers, thinking 'outside the box'.
• Empowering people is our aim.

OTs help people of all ages who have physical, mental or social problems, this could be as a result of accident, illness/condition or ageing. They are there to enable people to do the things they want to do, such as ADLs (activities of daily living) i.e activities that many of us take for granted,  like doing a weekly food shop, cooking a meal or brushing your teeth, to more complex activities such as caring for children, succeeding in studies or work, or maintaining a healthy social life. - COT.

It's the little things that matter to people, and OT is a client centred, evidence based profession. In other words we are there to enable people to achieve the goals that have value and meaning to them, however big or small, and this is achieved using interventions or approached that are validated by evidence. 

Why did I choose it?

Because I wanted a 'hands on' job working with people, I wanted to make a difference in peoples lives and I wanted a job where there are no two days the same, no two clients the same and no two situations the same. 

I felt that I had the right traits to fit into the profession, and not the other way round.

Why I think it's an important health care profession -

We are both the prevention and the treatment. We can work in many different areas, and new roles are emerging all the time, and we can collaborate with other professionals to enhance the health care experience.

We advocate enablement.

There are some amazing OT blogs on the Internet - inspiring for students like myself, illustrating some of the creative, and diverse approaches taken. If those of you who read my blog still aren't 100% what OT is, I encourage you to search 'occupational therapy' on Blogger, or 'occupational therapy blog' on google, and just read some of the posts, they are an amazing way to gain an insight into what it is exactly that OTs do! 

xx