News from Finland

September 2009

Suomen Toimintaterapeuttiliitto ry - Finlands Ergoterapeutförbund rf, TOI, arranged the association’s bi-annual OT-congress 3.-4.9.2009 in Helsinki. The theme of the days was ”Competent occupational therapist”. The program contained seminars and workshops. Topics were clinical work, professional development and current research. Over 160 finnish occupational therapists gathered together to meet colleagues and discuss occupational therapy: the current situation and new challenges.

Prior the national congress the chairmen of the Nordic OT assosiations had their meeting in Helsinki 31.8.  The annual meeting is one form of close collaboration of the Nordic OT associations. This year a new event “Nordic Forum” took place 1.-2.9. in Helsinki.This was an invitational seminar with a theme of “Vocational assessment in Nordic countries”.

As an outcome of the seminar a common statement will be published. A nordic network of Ots working in the field of vocational assessment was initiated right after the seminar

TOIs new Executive Director Leila Mäkelä has started her work in the beginning of August. Leila is an occupational therapist who has diverse work experience and also is a long term active member of TOI. She is the only full time employee of the association.

TOIs roof organisation Akava Special Branches is organizing ”Great Work!” – safeguarding tour in 2009. The aim of the tour is to meet and hear the members before the collective agreement negoatiations. Occupational therapist have actively taken part in ”Great Work”- events. The union participates in public sector collective agreement negotiations through the Negotiation Organisation for Public Sector Professionals JUKO. Akava Special Branches exerts an influence within the private sector through the Experts and Managerial Professionals Association YTN. Akava Special Branches is a member of both negotiating bodies. Negotiations take place in 2009-2010 and the agreements will be effective in 2010-2012.

The National Product Control Agency for Welfare and Health (STTV) and the National Authority for Medicolegal Affairs (TEO) merged on 1 January 2009 creating a new central office of the administrative sector of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health known as the National Supervisory Authority for Welfare and Health (Valvira). Through guidance and supervision, Valvira improves the management of health risks in the environment as well as legal protection and the quality of services in social welfare and health care. Valvira is the registering body of OTs and other health care professionals in Finland.

February 2009
 

Leila Mäkelä has been appointed as the new executive director for TOI (Finnish Association of Occupational Therapists), effective August 2009.
 

TOI membership will exceed 2000 during the ongoing year. During the first half of January TOI had 1948 members.
 

Next year, 40 years will have passed since the beginning of occupational therapy education in Finland. An occupational therapy textbook is in preparation to be published in Finnish in celebration of the jubilee year. The authors are occupational therapists and teachers of occupational therapy from all over Finland.
 

The university level education in occupational therapy will come to an end in Finland this summer. The last researchers' symposium will be held at the University of Jyväskylä on May 25^th , 2009, and a celebratory occupational therapy seminar will be arranged the following day (commemorating the years of occupational therapy education in Jyväskylä which was started 1998).
 

Upcoming events:
 

• ”Moonlight seminar” for TOI regional contacts, April 25^th to 26^th, 2009 in Mikkeli. Regional activities have been a part of TOI's action and economic plan since 1989, making this year the celebratory 20^th year.

• Meeting of the Nordic occupational therapy associations' chairpersons, August 31^th, 2009 in Helsinki.

• Nordic Forum invitational seminar, September 1^st to 2^nd, 2009 in Helsinki. The theme of the seminar is vocational assessment.

• TOI national congress, September 3^rd to 4^th, 2009 in Helsinki.

September 2008

Occupational Therapy Action -award of the year to scriptwriter Pekko Pesonen

Scriptwriter Pekko Pesonen was granted TOIs Occupational Therapy Action of the year 2007 -award. Pesonen wrote a miniseries “Veljet” (“Brothers”) that tells a story of a 16-year old Pyry and his brother Otto, who suffers from ADHD. In the series it was clearly seen how much impact occupational therapy - or lack of it - has in everyday life of a family. Occupational therapy being visible in mainstream tv-series in Finland is showing increasing awareness and valuing of the profession.

Toimit – team

Toimit-team was founded to act as a co-operative team in TOIMIA – project of public health work. TOIMIA-project aims to make measuring and terminology in the rehabilitation fieldsmore unite among various professions and strengthen networks.

Toimit-team will gather information on assessment and measuring tools used in Finland and see if is there a need for something more. The team will also make guidelines for publishing and research of assessment and measurement tools for future.

New Governmental guidelines for Social and health care: KASTE-programme 2008-2011

KASTE-programme is a new Governmental plan for social and health care services. The plan also defines greatly the research done in National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health (STAKES), the National Public Health Institute, the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health and the State Provincial Offices and the priorities in their work in 2008–2011. The objectives of the programme are: 1)the municipal inhabitants’ involvement will increase and their social exclusion will be reduced 2) the municipal inhabitants’ wellbeing and health will increase, inequalities in wellbeing and health diminish 3) the quality, effectiveness and availability of services for the municipal inhabitants will improve and regional inequalities will be reduced. The programme aims to achieve the objectives by prevention and early intervention, ensuring the sufficiency of staff strengthening skills and by social and health care services functioning as an integral whole and effective models of operation.

New Executive Director for Finnish Association of Occupational Therapists

Arja Kivi will follow Ulla Vehkaperä as Executive Director for Finnish Association of Occupational Therapists starting 1.9.2008.

TOI has since 2001 employed a full time executive director and since 2006 a part time secretary.

March 2008

Health care professionals made it into the headlines of  Finnish media in autumn 2007. The general wage negotiations and the demographic changes in the labour market were the main topics.

The last round of negotiations saw a moderately good rise of salaries in fields where females represent a majority. Occupational therapists are counted among these in Finland.

There is a great concern for sufficient competent labour especially in the social and health care sector as a large number of professionals will retire in the near future. The ageing population also challenges the social and health care sector to develop home care and rehabilitation services. In the Occupational therapy field these challenges are seen as a possibility to open new doors and expand OT services. OTs might, for instance, have a significant role in the process of incorporating more disabled persons into the labour market as an answer to the growing need for labour.

Coming events

TOI’s Annual General Meeting will be held April 26, 2008. In addition to the statutory AGM items

TOI’s Educational Policy program for 2008-2012 will be adapted at the meeting. Also the OT of the year and the receivers of this year’s awards will be announced.  The Association’s new visual image and new webpages will be launched the same day.