Introduction
Occupational therapy (OT) can be defined as the application of interventions and assessments to “develop, recover, or maintain the meaningful activities, or occupations, of individuals, groups, or communities” (Wolf, Chuh, Floyd, McInnis, & Williams, 2015). Notably, AT is in alliance with health profession carried out by occupational therapy assistants (OTA) and occupational therapists. The nature of occupation in occupational therapy refers to individual’s day to day activities in families and the community. There are two approaches to OT: Generalist Approach vs A Specific Setting.
Generalist Approach vs A Specific Setting
The definition of a generalist according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary is “a person who knows something about a lot of subjects”. A specialist is defined as “a person who has special knowledge and skill relating to a particular job, area of study” (Merriam-webster, 2019). The contemporary approach of generalists in occupation therapy views the OT practitioners as “jacks of all trade” as they have comprehension of numerous problems. Conversely, A Specific Setting is “the place or social context in which people engage in daily activities in which environmental, organizational, and personal factors interact to affect health and wellbeing” (WHO, 2019). A specific setting examines the several related factors that make up the whole OT system and assumes interventions that amalgamate them to reduce risks. Neufeld and Kettner (2014) argue that the approach of the settings approach in OT is to develop a supportive environment for optimal health through partnership with patients and flexibility.
Occupational Therapy (OT) as A Profession
A good general definition of OT as a profession is that it involves helping individuals facing problems in their occupations and assisting them to continue with their day to day activities. The profession of OT believes that an individual’s health can be promoted via active engagement in their occupations (Gallagher, Muldoon, & Pettigrew, 2015). Occupational therapists hold medical skills to deal with mental health problems and put in efforts to deal with prevention and intervention of mental health. Moreover, they offer services focusing on intensive intervention, screenings, prevention of negative behaviors, and emotional well-being through the use of public health approach.
Interventions
Common interventions in occupational therapy involve assistants and therapists working with people in numerous ways such as; assisting senior adults through physical and cognitive changes as well as assisting children with disabilities.
Group therapy
These refers to a structure whereby numerous parties contributing to a psychological intervention to help them deal or change a particular problem. Notably, group therapy interventions are better than the individual interventions as they involve empathetic learning from other individuals and they are conducted in a safe environment.
Advocacy
According to OT literature, advocacy involves advocating for individuals with challenges. OT therapists advocate because some individuals “relate to themselves, some relate to clients, and others relate to both.” The goal usually is to facilitate the performance of these individuals in their occupations.
Training
For occupational therapists to begin their intervention and evaluations, they receive training in task analysis to help them easily determine the appropriate solution to achieve optimal goals.
Theoretical Perspectives
Some of the theories, and practice models that shape occupational therapy include:
Model of Human Occupation (MOHO): according to this model, the individual occupation is viewed as “complex and being influenced by a person’s volition, habituation, the aspects of performance, and the environment in which it occurs” (Wagman, 2014). The model is holistic and client-centered focusing on the notion that an individual can improve their adaptive response through participation in occupations. Therefore, the goal is to engross these individuals in occupations that maintain, or restore their capacity of performance, patterning, and their lives by offering alternative ways to make significant changes.
Occupational Adaptation Model (OAM): The goal of this model is to perfect chosen activities by patients. This model aims to incorporate the two main domains (adaptation and occupation) for OT. The patient chooses meaningful activities that they would like to perfect during treatment planning (Wong & Fisher, 2015). Occupation therapist emphasizes on the chosen activities as well as the individual’s roles and environment. Notably, the evaluation is be based on the concept of relative mastery
The Ecology of Human Performance framework (EHP): Lee (2016) notes that this model centers on the relationship between numerous paramount occupational therapy constructs. He states that “they are person, context, task, performance, and therapeutic intervention, in order to get a throughout understand of human occupation.” Occupational therapists examine the performance of the individuals considering contextual information. The goal of this model is to establish and restore individual’s performance in their occupations. The intervention involves of therapist, patient, and the family to improve their occupational performance.
References
Aotaorg. (2016). Mental Health Promotion, Prevention, And Intervention. Retrieved 20 November, 2019, from https://www.aota.org/~/media/Corporate/Files/Practice/MentalHealth/Distinct-Value-Mental-Health.pdf
Dunn, W., Gilbert, M. P., & Parker, K. The Ecology of Human Performance Framework: A Model for. Ecology, 1, 0.
Gallagher, M., Muldoon, O. T., & Pettigrew, J. (2015). An integrative review of social and occupational factors influencing health and wellbeing. Frontiers in psychology, 6, 1281.
Lee, J. (2016). Achieving best practice: A review of evidence linked to occupation-focused practice models. Occupational Therapy in Health Care, 24(3), 206-222.
Merriam-webster. (2019). Generalist. Retrieved November 20, 2019, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/generalist.
Min, J. A., Lee, C. U., & Lee, C. (2013). Mental health promotion and illness prevention: a challenge for psychiatrists. Psychiatry investigation, 10(4), 307.
Neufeld, J., & Kettner, J. (2014). The Settings Approach in Public Health: Thinking about Schools in Infectious Disease Prevention and Control. Purple Paper.
WHO. (2019). Healthy Settings. Retrieved November 20, 2019, from https://www.who.int/healthpromotion/healthy-settings/en/.
Wagman, P. (2014). The model of human occupation’s usefulness in relation to sustainable development. British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 77(3), 165-167.
Wolf, T. J., Chuh, A., Floyd, T., McInnis, K., & Williams, E. (2015). Effectiveness of occupation-based interventions to improve areas of occupation and social participation after stroke: An evidence-based review. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 69(1), 6901180060p1-6901180060p11.
Wong, S. R., & Fisher, G. (2015). Comparing and using occupation-focused models. Occupational therapy in health care, 29(3), 297-315.
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