Core Skills and Competencies: Part 1, What is Experience?

Abstract

In this first article of a series of four, the focus is on outlining the perception of authors who are concerned with the acquisition of professional expertise. This work is related to the reasons for and the difficulty in defining specifically what occupational therapists do without having to resort to listing technical tasks. This is especially relevant now, more than ever, as occupational therapists are asked to justify and defend local and national career structures in terms of input and outcomes for clients' needs. Part 2 will describe the competency approach as a method of clarifying the input of occupational therapy practitioners. Part 3 will detail research carried out in this field and give examples of the competencies of occupational therapists from basic grade to head level, showing graded levels of expertise. Lastly, part 4 will demonstrate the practical application of this work.

From Student to Therapist: Exploring the First Year of Practice

“…Jenkins, Mallett, O'Neill, McFadden, and Baird (1994) argued that professional performance represents a continuum of skills and that with the growth of knowledge and experience, novice practitioners will become more and more expert. Hollis (1993) labeled the concept of schemata (i.e., encoding, storing, recalling, and applying information based on previous experiences) as a skill of the experienced therapist. Rogers (1983) described a similar process used by experts where clinical experiences are stored and classified in memory and retrieved as needed for application to new clients.…”

“…Rogers (1983) described a similar process used by experts where clinical experiences are stored and classified in memory and retrieved as needed for application to new clients. Experts are seen to think differently from novices (Benner, 1985;Hollis, 1993;Rogers, 1983). Curtis and Martin (1993) and Smith (1989) have commented on the "unrealistic expectations" many new graduates in physical therapy are perceived to have and the consequent stress they experience.…”

The Lived Experience of Becoming an Occupational Therapist

“…Professional construct and professional socialisation Hollis (1993) suggested that our understanding of the world as professionals can be defined by the term 'professional construct', which includes the development of professional image, perspective, wisdom and ability in occupational therapy practice. The concept is an internal process that incorporates both developmental and experiential growth, and is open-ended in nature.…”

Better Access to Mental Health program: Influence of mental health occupational therapy

“…Therefore, an argument can be made about the type of professional and academic background of a therapist who shapes their perspective. Hollis () suggests that this is termed professional construct, and it allows for an understanding of the world as professionals. This includes the development of a professional identity, perspective, wisdom and ability in occupational therapy (Hollis).…”