Community Service Occupational Therapists: thriving or just surviving?

Stormbroek, Kirsty van; Buchanan, Helen

doi:10.17159/23103833/2016/v46n3a11

Cited by 18 publications

(39 citation statements)

References 24 publications

(40 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The lack of posts in the public sector is one of the primary reasons for poor retention of community service therapists [30]. Other push factors include restricted resources, poor supervision, cultural incompetence, feelings of unpreparedness for the skill set required [7,9,22,31] negative exposure to rural and urban experiences during training, favouring urban over rural placements, proximity to home, family contact, relationships and dependents [32]. These factors require attention when developing a national human resource retention plan for public service.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changing demographic trends among South African occupational therapists: 2002 to 2018

et al. 2020

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: South Africa's quadruple burden of disease, coupled with health system challenges and other factors, predicts a high burden of disability within the population. Human Resources for Health policy and planning need to take account of this challenge. Occupational therapists are part of the health rehabilitation team, and their supply and status in the workforce need to be better understood. Methods: The study was a retrospective record-based review of the Health Professions Council of South Africa database from 2002 to 2018. The data obtained from the Health Professions Council of South Africa was analysed for the following variables: geographical location, population groups, age, practice type and sex. Data was entered on a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet and analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS version 22.0). Results: In 2018, there were 5180 occupational therapists registered with the Health Professions Council of South Africa with a ratio of 0.9 occupational therapists per 10 000 population. There has been an average annual increase of 7.1% over the time period of 2002-2018. The majority of occupational therapists are located in the more densely populated and urbanised provinces, namely Gauteng, Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. Most of the registered occupational therapists are under the age of 40 years (67.7%). The majority (66%) are classified as white followed by those classified as black and coloured. Females make up 95% of the registered occupational therapists. Nationally, 74.8% of occupational therapists are deployed in the private sector catering for 16% of the population while approximately 25.2% are employed in the public sector catering for 84% of the population. Conclusions: Under-resourcing and disparities in the profile and distribution of occupational therapy human resources remain an abiding concern which negatively impacts on rehabilitation service provision and equitable health and rehabilitation outcomes.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changing demographic trends among South African occupational therapists: 2002 to 2018

et al. 2020

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Other challenges include struggling with clinical reasoning, managing the weight of patient responsibilities, grappling with professional identity (Toal‐Sullivan), managing a sense of low self‐confidence and supervising occupational therapy assistants (McCombie & Antanavage, ). However, the challenges of the transition do not solely define the transition experience and graduates often report the transition as positive in many respects (McCombie & Antanavage; van Stormbroek & Buchanan, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, he health system remains dominated by a facility‐based, medical model orientation (Department of Health, ; Hess‐April, ) and graduates have reported feeling inadequately prepared for preventive and promotive approaches (Naidoo et al .). It is therefore not surprising that Community Service therapists have reported their most common referrals as wheelchair‐related services, early child development, disability grant assessments, neurological conditions and upper limb injures (van Stormbroek & Buchanan, ). This study was thus undertaken both to inform undergraduate occupational therapy curricula in order to equip graduates appropriately for the realities of practice, and to establish whether additional support and development strategies are required during the Community Service year (first year of practice), particularly when it occurs in rural and under‐resourced areas.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Novice occupational therapists: Navigating complex practice contexts in South Africa

Stormbroek

Buchanan

2019

Aus Occup Therapy J

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background/aim: The transition from student to occupational therapy practitioner is challenging. In South Africa, this transition is undertaken in rural and underserved areas, as graduate health professionals are deployed by the government for a year of compulsory Community Service. This study set out to establish the characteristics of these practice settings, the resources available for occupational therapy services, the availability and quality of supervision, and participants' perceived ability to communicate with their patients and negotiate cultural differences. Methods: A cross-sectional survey design was utilised and a questionnaire was sent to all occupational therapists completing Community Service in 2013 (N = 240). Data were analysed using Stata 12 and IBM SPSS Statistics 21.0. Frequencies and percentages were calculated for categorical variables and associations tested with Odds Ratios and the Pearson's Chi square test. Responses to openended questions were post-coded. Results: A 44.3% (n = 103) response rate was achieved. Practice settings often provided few resources. Although most participants had supervisors (89.6%), many did not find supervision satisfactory (65.9%). Communication difficulties featured strongly (73.9%), but the majority of participants felt they possessed basic cultural competence. Conclusion: Participants worked within complex practice settings that were frequently resource-restricted with less than satisfactory supervision. Practice required cultural competence and an ability to work across language barriers. Undergraduate curricula need to be tailored to equip new graduates to navigate these contextual realities. Furthermore, human resourcing strategies need to be evaluated and effective supervision and support structures need to be developed.

show abstract

“…CS occupational therapists encounter the additional challenge of communication difficulties, partly due to language discordance between patient and therapist, which may lead to a loss of meaning and therapeutic properties of the therapeutic relationship with the client which posed a hindrance to therapy [8][9]23 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hand health for all: Do undergraduate occupational therapy hand curricula respond to the call?

Stormbroek

Buchanan

2018

S. Afr. j. occup. ther.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The call for higher education curricula to be responsive to the South African context is growing louder. Injuries to the hand are common in South Africa and intervention is often provided by novice occupational therapists who may work in complex practice contexts with limited supervision. Comprehensive hand health practice addresses both the biomedical and occupational dimensions of the human hand. Undergraduate education programmes should be responsive to this reality in preparing graduates adequately for hand practice. This article describes the content of hand curricula within occupational therapy undergraduate programmes in South Africa with the purpose of considering how they prepare graduates for the practice realities they may face during community service. A descriptive cross-sectional survey design was used with an online questionnaire aimed at determining the nature and extent of hand curricula presented in South African undergraduate occupational therapy programmes (n=8). Data were analysed using Stata 12. Time allocated to hand impairments varied considerably across universities. While assessment of biomedical performance components were taught by all universities, the occupational perspective was limited. The range and number of hand conditions and treatment modalities that were taught also varied. Findings are discussed against the contextual realities of practice in South Africa, primary health care policy, and national and international minimum standards for the education of occupational therapists. Core aspects of a hand curriculum are proposed as a means to enhance comprehensive hand health practice.

show abstract

Community Service Occupational Therapists: thriving or just surviving?

Abstract: ABSTRACT

Cited by 18 publications

References 24 publications

Changing demographic trends among South African occupational therapists: 2002 to 2018

Changing demographic trends among South African occupational therapists: 2002 to 2018

Novice occupational therapists: Navigating complex practice contexts in South Africa

Hand health for all: Do undergraduate occupational therapy hand curricula respond to the call?

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About