BACKGROUND: This study explores the concept ofprofessionalism from the vantage point of a cohort of students as well as professionally qualified and practising occupational therapists. With the changes health care delivery is experiencing nationally as well as internationally, there is an urgent need to identify students and qualified professionals' expectations of what influences the development thereof, as well as elicit perceptions of attributes which contribute to professionalism. METHODS: The study is primarily a descriptive study with a specific focus on a mixed method of quantitative and qualitative research designs, using interpretative phenomenological analysis methodology. Data were gathered from 56 final-year and 55 professionally registered occupational therapists, who participated in a pen-and-paper questionnaire consisting of three sections. RESULTS: The results of this study indicated a clear differentiation between the influence of both the formal and hidden curricula and that clinical competence, client-centred practice and professional standards contributed mostly to professional behaviour. CONCLUSION: This study brings to light the experiences of students and professional practitioners to what they expect would influence the professional conduct. The findings are open to theoretical generalizability and raise issues that may be used by academic staff in the preparation of students to become more professional, as well of future Continuous Professional Development training. Key Words: Professionalism; Clinical competence; Client-Centred practice; Professional standards
The COVID-19 pandemic is a global human ecosystem disruption affecting almost every facet of daily living. South Africa adopted a risk-adjusted approach comprising five-levels to curb the spread of COVID-19. Early in 2020, the country experienced level 5 and 4 restrictions, indicating high COVID-19 spread with low to moderate health system readiness. South Africans were largely confined to their homes. This study explored young adults' experiences of leisure engagement during the confinement, adaptations made, and the influence on health and wellbeing. Thirteen occupational therapy student researchers conducted individual qualitative, exploratory-descriptive studies on young adults' leisure experiences during the level 5 and 4 confinements. The authors used a qualitative meta-analytic approach to review the student researchers' primary studies and synthesize findings for this paper. The sample comprised 65 participants aged 18 to 32 years (mean age 22.2 years), the majority being either students or employed. Participants were interviewed online or submitted written responses to open-ended questions focusing on their leisure engagement during the confinement. Relevant data were extracted from the primary studies and analyzed thematically. Four themes emerged: 1) disruption, 2) time, 3) adaptations to change, and 4) leisure benefits. Although participants experienced the confinement as disruptive, and restricting their leisure and social engagement, they adapted and developed new leisure occupations, which had a positive influence on their health and wellbeing. In conclusion, the young adults dealt with the occupational injustices of confinement by adapting their leisure engagement, thus displaying occupational resilience, which positively influenced health and well-being.
Differences in parent perceptions regarding occupational therapy using a sensory integration approach to treatment have been noted. The various factors that may influence these perceptions, and how the perceptions may ultimately influence the outcome of the intervention for the child and family were questioned. A phenomenological study revealed a progression that all parents perceived and experienced as the "before", "input" and "after" phases of when their child received occupational therapy/sensory integration (OT/SI). This article focuses specifically on the "input" phase of OT/SI intervention. Method: Participants in this study were nine parents of children with difficulties processing and integrating sensory information, who live in the Western Cape, South Africa. Using a qualitative, phenomenological approach, data were collected during face-to-face interviews, participant observation and researcher's field notes. Findings: The main theme related to this phase of analysis was "Just suddenly everything made so much sense". For most participants, this phase brought to light a better understanding of sensory integration disorder (SID), also known as Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) and OT/SI. Data analysis identified two subthemes that catalysed expansion in most participants' understanding, which were the role of the occupational therapist, and the OT/SI intervention process. Within these subthemes, the facilitating factors and barriers of OT/ SI intervention emerged. Conclusion: Insight gained from the participants' recommendations and interpretation of findings allowed recommendations to be made within the OT/SI intervention received, in an attempt to overcome the barriers and promote the facilitators that will make a difference to OT/SI in South Africa. the delivery of OT/SI intervention meets the needs of parents and their children in South Africa.
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