Summary :
Occupational therapists in medical-social institutions often take coordinating roles, such as project management or quality assurance. Why is this profession called upon for these tasks? Do the specific skills of occupational therapists facilitate these coordinating roles? Or is it a recognition of their personal qualities? The educational advisors of occupational therapy training institutes (IFE) are interested in these questions as they are preparing future occupational therapists for project management and inter-professional collaboration, while maintaining the technical nature of their profession.
As healthcare services are fast changing, especially through population-based approaches and deinstitutionalization, occupational therapists are likely to take on coordinating roles, thanks to their core training and practice skills that focus on interactions between individuals, their environment and their occupations.
The carrer of Audrey Verhille, a graduate in occupational therapy, is a good illustration of this dynamic. She switched from clinical practice to quality assurance and network coordination. Her professional experiences show how project management skills, interpersonal and leadership skills, developed throughout her career, can be instrumental to fulfil her missions.
Occupational therapists’ leadership skills can be enhanced along their careers through professional opportunities and employers’ trust. Such skills must be screened and fostered from the beginning of their training. Students must quickly become aware of the importance of communication and of the necessary and enriching collaboration with other professionals. This would strengthen the professional identity of occupational therapists and their ability to positively influence the dynamics of changes in the medical-social branch.
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Article rédigé par :
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Audrey Verhille
Ergothérapeute DE
Coordinatrice territoriale à l’Équipe Relais Handicaps Rares (ERHR) Nord-Est
audrey.verhille@laposte.net
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Fanny Gardeux
Ergothérapeute DE
Référente pédagogique à l’Institut de formation en ergothérapie de Nancy
fanny.gardeux@ergo-nancy.com
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Cédric Gavier
Ergothérapeute DE
Référent pédagogique à l’Institut de formation en ergothérapie de Nancy
cedric.gavier@ergo-nancy.com