Date Presented 3/30/2017
Initiating curricula in five countries with few resources was influenced by the interaction of local context, key events, and stakeholders’ conceptions of occupational therapy and education. These findings support development of effective and locally situated occupational therapy programs.
Primary Author and Speaker: Bill Roberts
Contributing Authors: Barb Hooper
PURPOSE: The number of occupational therapists and occupational therapy education programs has increased significantly in recent years (World Federation of Occupational Therapists [WFOT], 2008, 2014). Many new occupational therapy education programs are being implemented in countries with few resources. WFOT recommends that new programs partner with existing programs to obtain resources such as curricula, materials, and educators (Hocking & Ness, 2004).
There is no research, however, regarding how occupational therapy programs with few resources are started or what resources are used to support their development. Occupational therapy scholars have voiced concerns that many occupational therapy concepts represented in exchanged resources originate in cultures different than the one in which they will be applied (Iwama, 2006). This study aims to understand how programs that are the first in the country or new programs in a developing country are designed and implemented. This study will provide information that can be used to develop resources to support the development of occupational therapy education programs in order to meet the needs of underserved populations.
DESIGN: This study used a qualitative multiple case study approach. Key informants recommended five individuals to participate in the study. Each participant was an educator knowledgeable about the implementation of an occupational therapy program that was the first program in the country or a new program in a developing country.
METHOD: Semistructured interviews were used to understand participants’ perceptions of resources used, challenges met, and factors that facilitated success during program implementation. Follow-up interviews were used to clarify participant’s perceptions. Interviews were recorded and transcribed. Data were analyzed using content analysis. Peer debriefing and member checking were used to enhance study trustworthiness.
RESULTS: In the development of the occupational therapy education programs, critical events, collaboration, and contextual factors influenced the development of the programs. Critical events such as the presence of occupational therapists from other countries, an influential stakeholder having a personal experience with occupational therapy, or an occupational therapist returning to his or her home country often act as impetuses in the implementation of educational programs. University requirements interact with local and national governing bodies to determine the direction of the new program. Collaboration among stakeholders within and outside the country was observed among many of the participating programs. The curricula of the newly implemented programs, including content, student recruitment, instructional processes, and resources used, are heavily influenced by institutional and local context. The programs varied in the way in which they addressed the fit of the curriculum within the local context.
CONCLUSION: While each of the education programs began by using different processes, each was uniquely influenced by the complex interaction of context and available resources, emphasizing the importance of the local context to curriculum development. If the local context is not explicitly considered, as advised by the WFOT (Hocking & Ness, 2002), the education may not be contextually relevant and may not optimize care of local service users.
IMPACT STATEMENT: The results of this study lead to a conceptualization of how occupational therapy programs are started in places with few resources, which will enable international bodies to support those programs in a way that values their local context and allows for improved client outcomes.
References
Hocking, C., & Ness, N. E. (2002). Introduction to the revised Minimum Standards for the Education of Occupational Therapists—2002. World Federation of Occupational Therapists Bulletin, 46, 30–33. https://doi.org/10.1080/20566077.2002.11721124
Hocking, C., & Ness, N. E. (2004). World Federation of Occupational Therapists: Advice for the establishment of a new programme of education for occupational therapists. Forrestfield, Western Australia: World Federation of Occupational Therapists.
Iwama, M. K. (2006). The Kawa model: Culturally relevant occupational therapy. New York: Elsevier Health Sciences.
World Federation of Occupational Therapists. (2008). Occupational Therapy Human Resources Project 2008. Forrestfield, Western Australia: Author.
World Federation of Occupational Therapists. (2014). 2014 Occupational Therapy Human Resources Project. Forrestfield, Western Australia: Author.
