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- Title
RESEARCH ARTICLE: AN EXPLORATION OF OCCUPATIONAL THERAPISTS' PERCEPTIONS OF THEIR ROLE IN EDUCATIONAL SETTINGS IN IRELAND.
- Authors
Quinn, Sarah; Mullally, Caroline
- Abstract
Within the Irish context the health and education needs of children with disabilities are differentiated. Health needs are the responsibility of the Department of Health and Children while education concerns are that of the Department of Education and Science. Although employed solely by the Department of Health and Children, occupational therapists address both education and health concerns. While they must liaise with school personnel, most therapists are clinic-based and may have difficulty negotiating their position within these two separate service providers. For this reason, this study set out to investigate occupational therapists' perceptions of their role in educational settings in Ireland. Guided by Personal Construct Theory, the study used repertory grid methodology to interview four occupational therapists, yielding both qualitative and quantitative data. Findings indicated that, inherently linked with participants' perception of their role was the location of their service, and this impacted on the relationships they formed with key personnel in school settings. Additionally, participants recognised that they often worked as consultants to schools, designing and monitoring programmes, which demonstrated an expansion of the traditional 'direct therapy' approach to service delivery. Further investigation is required to assess whether or not the principles of 'full inclusion' can be supported within the current Irish education system and to measure the impact, on perceived roles, of moving Occupational Therapy services from the clinic to the school.
- Subjects
IRELAND; EDUCATION of children with disabilities; CHILDREN'S health; SCHOOL administration; OCCUPATIONAL therapy; INSTRUCTIONAL systems; IRELAND. Dept. of Education; IRELAND. Dept. of Health; EDUCATION policy
- Publication
Irish Journal of Occupational Therapy, 2008, Vol 36, Issue 2, p4
- ISSN
0791-8437
- Publication type
Article