News from the United Kingdom – August 2009
British Association and College of Occupational Therapists (BAOT/COT)
· Website
BAOT/COT’s new website www.baot.org.uk was launched in June 2009. It features a user centred design, based on careful research with members, non-members, the general public and staff. It operates on a new technical platform and later in the year will be able to offer online joining for new BAOT members and online purchase of study events and publications, as it interacts with the new membership database that is being installed. All the content has been revised and new sections are planned over the coming months, which will include particular emphasis on social networking for members and more information for the public about occupational therapy.
· Occupational Therapy News (OTN)
OTN, the organisation’s member magazine, was relaunched in June 2009. The new layout and design was based on consultation with the readership and complements the new website.
· British Journal Of Occupational Therapy (BJOT)
BAOT/COT signed an agreement with the Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists in 2008 to set up reciprocal online access for members with the Canadian Journal of Occupational Therapy (CJOT). This has proved very popular. It is hoped this will establish a model for similar agreements with other titles. BJOT continues to welcome a growing number of articles from international contributors
· Annual Conferences 2009/2010
BAOT/COT was delighted to welcome a record number of delegates and international participants to its June conference which included a popular international session. Next year’s conference will be held in the popular seaside city of Brighton, 23-25 June 2010. Details can be found at www.cot.org.uk
· Work Plan 2009/10
BAOT/COT Council at its October meeting will be asked to approve a work plan for the next business year which highlights three priority themes for the profession – the ageing population, public health and innovative service delivery in community setting.
· Political Party Conferences
For a second year, the organisation working with key partners will be running events at the three autumn party conferences, with the aim of influencing the political agenda in the run up to the general election expected in spring 2010.
· World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT) Congress
The British Association will be taking a stand at the Congress in Chile and looks forward to making contact with international friends and colleagues who will be there.
· Towards an NHS Guidance Framework for UK Health Sector Involvement in International Development – Consultation Paper
BAOT/COT is responding to this consultation which is a key step towards the publication of an NHS International Framework at the end of the year.
News from the United Kingdom – May 2009
British Association of Occupational Therapists (BAOT)
· MENTAL WELLBEING AND OLDER PEOPLE
The British Association and College of Occupational Therapists (BAOT/COT) is asking all UK occupational therapists working with older people to help support the implementation of the latest public intervention guidance to be published by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) – ‘Occupational therapy and physical activity interventions to promote the mental wellbeing of older people in primary and residential care’. The recommendations contained in this important guidance have thrust occupational therapy into the forefront of the national active ageing agenda, with an excellent opportunity to showcase our expertise and influence the service development.
The guidance is available to download at www.nice.org.uk; email julia.roberts@cot.co.uk for details of mechanisms being put in place by BAOT/COT to support members in responding to the guidance.
· NEW WHO WHEELCHAIR GUIDELINES
On 25 August 2008, the World Health Organisation (WHO), the US Agency for International Development, the International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics and Disabled Peoples’ International launched the ‘Guidelines on the provision of Manual Wheelchairs in Less Resourced Settings’. The Guidelines are a powerful tool to argue for the right to appropriate mobility equipment provision and represent a milestone for wheelchair users in developing countries. For the first time, they are having their needs recognised and promoted. Motivation, a UK based Charitable Trust who have been working for the past 17 years promoting the principles now endorsed in the Guidelines, had a key role in the work to compile them. BAOT/COT have had close links with David Constantine, a co-founder of Motivation, for a number of years and are delighted that the principles he has pioneered have been integrated into this influential document.
· TRANSFORMING COMMUNITY SERVICES
The Transforming Community Services (TCS) programme is a major element in the vision for Primary and Community Care set out in the NHS Next Stage Review. It is part of a wider government strategy to improve community services but has potentially both positive and negative implications for occupational therapy staff and their service users. BAOT/COT are developing a range of tools and materials to assist their members in preparing for and implementing the significant changes that these initiatives will bring.
· UK OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY RESEARCH FOUNDATION (UKOTRF)
The BAOT/COT Research & Development team are currently in the process of review for the second year of grant-awarding by the UK Occupational Therapy Research Foundation (UKOTRF), with grants available to meet research priority areas and to build research capacity. They are also delighted to have two new awards from external funders – the Institute of Social Psychiatry and Pressalit Care, which will further enable BAOT/COT to support members in doctoral or early postdoctoral work.
· ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2009
The College of Occupational Therapists (COT) 33rd Annual Conference and Exhibition will be held 23-26 June 2009 at the Brighton Centre in Brighton, Sussex. Booking has now opened
www.cot.org.uk/fourannualconferences We look forward to welcoming colleagues from around the world.
· BRITISH JOURNAL OF OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY
The British Journal of Occupational Therapy launched its International Advisory Board in the March issue, as well as its new designs for both the cover and the articles. The Editorial Board and team welcome feedback and would be delighted to receive more articles from international authors. The Author’s Guide can be found at: http://www.cot.org.uk/public/publications/journals/bjot/intro.php
· OUTCOMES OF OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY INTERVENTION
BAOT/COT is continuing work to develop a national list of outcomes of occupational therapy intervention. The next stage involves examining outcome measure tools and the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) to identify terms that are used by OTs as outcomes of their intervention. The national list will be submitted for incorporation into SNOMED CT as a subset, to be used in electronic care records in the National Health Service (NHS).
· CLINICAL ASSESSMENTS USED BY OTs IN THE NHS
Last summer, BAOT/COT submitted a list of published clinical assessment tools that are used by OTs in the NHS, to be incorporated into SNOMED CT as a subset. This work is on hold while the national SNOMED team agree how best to incorporate the wide range of clinical assessment tools used in the NHS. The subset will be reviewed annually to ensure it remains relevant to practice and research.
News from the British Association of Occupational Therapists (BAOT)
September 2008
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BRITISH JOURNAL OF OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY – BJOT
BJOT launched its new online submission system, via ‘Manuscript Central’, in March 2008. It has already attracted increased numbers of authors to submit their articles using this user friendly system. Contributions from international colleagues are particularly welcome. Visit www.baot.org.uk for a BJOT ‘Author’s Guide’ and http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/bjot to submit an article.
BJOT is also setting up an ‘International Advisory Board’ to offer expert advice on how BJOT can better serve the global community.
From 1 October 2008, BAOT members will enjoy online access to the Canadian Journal of Occupational Therapy (CJOT) online, as part of their membership package. Similarly, Canadian Association (CAOT) members will be able to have access to BJOT online. This follows a landmark reciprocal agreement between the two organisations, signed at the Hamburg Congress.
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ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2009
The College of Occupational Therapists (COT) 33rd Annual Conference and Exhibition will be held 23-26 June 2009 in Brighton, Sussex, a fashionable seaside town on the south coast of England. Three of the organisation’s specialist sections will run their annual events in parallel: ‘Older People’, People with Learning Disabilities’, ‘HIV/AIDS, Oncology, Palliative Care’. The call for papers closed on 29 September 2008. For more information, visit www.cot.org.uk/annualconference.
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HAMBURG 2008
The BAOT ran a stand at the Council of Occupational Therapists for the European Countries (COTEC) congress in Hamburg in May 2008 and very much enjoyed talking with colleagues from Europe and beyond interested in working in the UK, in publishing in BJOT and in the new UK Occupational Therapy Research Foundation (UKOTRF). The 2009 round of funding grants from the UKOTRF will shortly be advertised via our publications and website. BAOT members with 2 years consecutive membership are eligible to apply for the available awards.
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WORKING IN THE UK
The UK home office was recently restructured. The new UK Border Agency now has responsibility for considering applications for permission to enter or stay in the UK and for the ‘Strict new jobs list for migrant workers’. Senior occupational therapists have reappeared on this list but visit www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk to confirm the latest situation, which may now change frequently to reflect employer needs.
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POLITICAL PROFILE
The organisation represented by the Chief Executive, Julia Scott, has presented at this autumn’s three major political party annual conferences in collaboration with the Sainsbury Centre, an influential mental health organisation. This activity responds to members’ call for the organisation to work to achieve a higher political profile for the profession.
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REGISTRATION
For the first time, all occupational therapists registered by the Health Professions Council may be subject to an audit of their continuing professional development in autumn 2009. www.hpc-uk.org has full details.
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NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE (NHS) IN EUROPE
The NHS Confederation, which represents over 95% of NHS organisations, has opened a new NHS European office in Brussels. A launch event on 10 September 2008 was attended on behalf of BAOT by Kate Sheehan, International Council member. See www.nhsconfed.org/euunit.
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NEW PUBLICATIONS www.cot.org.uk/publications
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‘Occupational Therapy in Adult Social Care in England – sustaining a high quality workforce for the future’ – Department of Health in partnership with COT (available October 2008).
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‘Health Promotion in Occupational Therapy’ – COT.
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‘Work Matters: vocational rehabilitation for occupational therapy staff’ – COT and national inclusion programme.
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OVERSEAS MEMBERSHIP OF THE BRITISH ASSOCIATION OF OCCUPATIONAL THERAPISTS
Membership of BAOT is available to occupational therapists from overseas. For a list of benefits, visit www.baot.org.uk/public/membership/intro.php.
News from The United Kingdom March 2008
BAOT/COT 32ND ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXHIBITION
11-13 June 2008 at Harrogate International Centre, Harrogate, Yorkshire.
For the first time the specialist section HIV/AIDS, Oncology, Palliative Care, annual conference is being run in conjunction with the British Association and College of Occupational Therapists annual conference and exhibition.
Rachel Thibeault will be one of the keynote speakers.
Full information is available at www.cot.org.uk and we look forward to welcoming even more international colleagues this year.
RECOVERING ORDINARY LIVES – THE COLLEGE OF OCCUPATIONAL THERAPISTS MENTAL HEALTH STRATEGY (2007-2017)
Launched in December 2006 with Her Royal Highness the Princess Royal, the College’s mental health strategy was the culmination of two years of wide scale consultation and partnership working with practitioners, managers, mental health service users and carers. The resultant Recovering Ordinary Lives area trilogy of documents:
- Recovering Ordinary Lives. The strategy for occupational therapy in mental health services 2007-2017. Literature Review. This document considers definitions, policy context, evidence bases and the current competing strands of modern mental health practice, especially around generic and profession specific working.
- Recovering Ordinary Lives. The strategy for occupational therapy in mental health services 2007-2017. Results from service user and carer focus groups. The results of these focus groups highlight areas of positive practice and those for further development.
- Recovering Ordinary Lives. The strategy for occupational therapy in mental health services 2007-2017. A vision for the next ten years. This document contains ten guiding principles and a vision statement written by a service user which emphasises the profession’s social perspective of mental health. Five main themes structure the document of valuing occupation, the added value of occupational therapy, occupational therapy leadership, education and training and workforce development. It also sets out milestones to be met at 2010, 2013 and 2017.
The College have been promoting the strategy via a series of 12 road shows throughout the UK to a total of approximately 700 occupational therapists, nurses, social workers, psychologists and service users. Further events are planned during 2008 including presentation at the 2008 COTEC conference in Hamburg. The College are also in the process of devising a self assessment toolkit for individuals and organisations based on the strategy in order to measure the milestones. For further information please contact genevieve.smyth@cot.co.uk
All the documents are available for free download from http://www.cot.org.uk/members/publications/list/intro/new.php
ACTIVITY PROVISION: BENCHMARKING GOOD PRACTICE IN CARE HOMES
Launched in October 2007, this benchmark tool was commissioned by the College of Occupational Therapists and produced in partnership with the National Association for Providers of Activities for Older People (NAPA).
The document is intended to inform, guide and encourage care home providers, managers and commissioners, and is of interest to residents, their families and friends, and care home inspectors.
The publication:
§ Offers a framework of person centred quality indicators and outcome measures for activity provision.
§ Incorporates a benchmark tool to evaluate current practice and promote excellence.
§ Summarises relevant UK policy drivers and care standards.
§ Includes supporting evidence for good quality activities in care homes.
Available in English and Welsh the document can be downloaded from:
FATIGUE MANAGEMENT FOR PEOPLE WITH MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS (2007)
Written by Sarah Harrison, this fully revised and updated new edition will inform physiotherapists, nurses, neurologists and general practitioners as to the complex nature of MS fatigue and the role of the occupational therapist in its management.
The guidance includes:
§ An overview of the many factors that contribute to fatigue in MS
§ The evidence base for the treatment of MS fatigue, using energy conservation/ fatigue management education programmes.
§ A summary of key outcome measures used both clinically and in research studies.
§ Practice guidance for occupational therapists in the implementation of both group and individual fatigue management programmes.
§ A case report demonstrating clinical reasoning (including goal setting and clinical outcome measurement).
§ A CD ROM resource pack.
Available to purchase from the COT website: http://www.cot.org.uk/public/publications/intro/intro.php
WORK MATTERS: VOCATIONAL NAVIGATION FOR OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY STAFF
Produced as a result of a collaboration between the College of Occupational Therapists and the National Social Inclusion Programme, this booklet was launched in November 2007.
It provides good practice guidance to support occupational therapists who work with people on their journeys to employment. It outlines some of the barriers and how occupational therapists can work with people to identify and tackle these. It also introduces some ideas on engaging with people around work issues and signposts readers to useful sources of information and potential partner organisations.
Available to download from:
UK OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY RESEARCH FOUNDATION – UKOTRF
UKOTRF is a new division of the College of Occupational Therapists and was officially launched at a prestigious event at Buckingham Palace in December. It aims to build an evidence-base for occupational therapy by supporting research into the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of occupation-focussed interventions; to increase research capacity within the profession and to raise public awareness of the valuable contribution of occupation to people’s health and wellbeing. See www.cot.org.uk/researchfoundation
BRITISH JOURNAL OF OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY – BJOT
BJOT celebrated its 70th birthday last year by looking back over its history and publishing a facsimile of its first issue in 1938 and introducing new innovations to secure its next 70 years. An online submission system for authors will go live this year and BJOT looks forward to receiving many more submissions from European authors with the advantages of this system.
Upma Barnett, BJOT Editor upma.barnett@cot.co.uk
OVERSEAS MEMBERSHIP OF THE BRITISH ASSOCIATION OF OCCUPATIONAL THERAPISTS
Membership of BAOT is available to occupational therapists from overseas. For a list of benefits visit http://www.cot.org.uk/public/membership/intro.php
British Association of Occupational Therapists (BAOT)
COTEC short news spring 2010
· BJOT JOINS THE HINARI SCHEME
HINARI is one of three key programmes now known as Research4Life. In these three programmes, over 150 publishers are providing access to more than 7,000 journals to almost 7,000 institutions in 108 countries within the developing world. In order for institutions to be eligible to participate in HINARI, they must be located in one of the HINARI-eligible countries, and be categorized by the World Health Organisation (WHO) into one of the eligible institution types, Band 1 (free) and Band 2 (deeply discounted) access groups. WHO registers prospective participating institutions after verifying their eligibility. The British Journal of Occupational Therapy (BJOT) and its publisher the College of Occupational Therapists (COT) are proud that BJOT is now be accessible via the scheme. For f