Overview

An occupational therapist (OT) supports people experiencing illness or disability to facilitate recovery and overcome barriers, enabling them to do the occupations (daily activities) they need or want to do. This support aims to improve their function, independence and quality of life.

An OT works with adults and children of all ages with a diverse range of physical and mental health conditions in settings including health and social care organisations (hospitals and the community), education, charities and private practice.

The course is accredited by the Health and Care Professions Council and the Royal College of Occupational Therapists. This offers you a wider range of future working opportunities in the countries affiliated to the World Federation of Occupational Therapists. It also enables students from the Republic of Ireland to work in Eire.

Technology is integral to your learning, ensuring you are future-ready. A new OT suite, opening September 2021, includes a simulated home, shared teaching area for group activities, and a four-bed ward area that mirrors the real practice environment. Other facilities include creative, art and pottery areas for you to gain group work and activity analysis skills.

The course has been written with the involvement of service users and carers lived experiences which ensures your learning remains relevant to the ever-changing landscape of professional practice. Modules include traditional health and social care employability, and private practice and entrepreneurship.

All new and continuing eligible students on this course will receive a £5,000 learning support fund each year, which is non-repayable. Eligible students can also apply for reimbursement of essential expenses for travel and accommodation to attend practice placements.

Top 5 reasons to study this course

• Varied and unique career prospects across all areas of health and social care
• Our strong links with local social care services, the NHS trusts, private and charitable organisations, and service users ensure the course content is relevant and current
• On campus OT facilities mirror aspects of clinical practice environments including creative group work rooms, a four-bed hospital ward and a simulated home
• Over 1,000 hours of practice placement experience
• The teaching team has over 60 years academic experience and knowledge in a wide range of clinical practice

Course details

Your career in occupational therapy commences in Year 1 as you undertake modules that provide the theoretical underpinning of occupational therapy, clinical sciences and an introduction to research and study skills. University theory and practice placements are alternated for you to put theory into its practice context. The whole course is structured in this way. Interprofessional learning activities including modules shared with other disciplines will be undertaken, and professional regulations, governance and ethics of practice are also explored.

Year 2 has two practice placements. Practice placement 2 is at the beginning of the academic year, and practice placement 3 starts in March. Year 2 builds upon the first-year modules to consolidate your learning and help you feel confident in your practice as the conditions and assessments you undertake become more complex.

Your final year international module, Community Building through Collective Occupations is your opportunity to learn with and from other learners and staff from across Europe. Other models will support your preparation for work. You also undertake your final practice placement, and your final major project.

You focus on facilitating independence through the occupational therapy process. There will be recognition that optimum health can exist within the context of disability and this is underpinned by concepts of health promotion, and reference to the environment and use of current assistive technology and equipment within the home. Services users will be involved to enable you to explore barriers to participation from a real-life perspective. You will analyse, develop, or modify therapy and environments, giving particular attention to future home design to develop independence and enhance occupational performance through a range of practical activities.

Lifespan, Living and Health

You focus on what makes us an occupational being. This includes functional anatomy, physiology, lifespan development and the role that sociocultural differences contribute to us being diverse individuals. From birth to the end of life, humans engage in a range of occupations which affect their health and wellbeing. In an interactive and reflective way, this module will help you to begin to consider the link between how individuals engage in occupations and their personal health and wellbeing.

Occupation for Wellbeing

This module focuses on the centrality of occupation in human life and transformative potential of occupation. You explore occupation-based activity analysis and the relationship between the person, environment, and occupation. Underpinned by the philosophy, values, and attitudes of the occupational therapy profession you consider the process of change and how individual behaviour can influence this. Restoring and maintaining health and wellbeing will be explored in the context of the role of public health and campaigns.

Preparation for Occupation Therapy Practise

You will focus on preparing for practice, covering all aspects of effective communication, non-discriminatory practice, workplace mandatory training, understanding lifelong learning, with tools to support this, what it means to be a professional, team working and expectations of the workplace. You study the legal and ethical boundaries of occupational therapy practice including the concept of confidentiality and the principles of information governance alongside the requirements of safeguarding confidential information and maintaining records in accordance with HCPC and RCOT standards, and local policies and procedures. This module incorporates a six-week practice placement  

Theory and Evidence in Occupational Therapy

This module establishes a foundation of understanding of key academic concepts underpinning both future study and contemporary practice. You are introduced to conceptual and philosophical foundations within occupational therapy and occupational science. Alongside this, you understand the role of research and scholarship to the profession, employing evidence informed approaches to support critical thinking. The module is underpinned by the Royal College of Occupational Therapists’ Career Development Framework (Evidence, Research and Development pillar), and you are encouraged to explore and challenge theory and evidence.

How you learn

As an adult learner, your learning takes place in a variety of settings and contexts, using many different methods to achieve learning outcomes, for example lectures, seminars and practical sessions. The quality of occupational therapy education at Teesside has been assessed as 'excellent' by the Quality Assurance Agency and much of the occupational therapy-specific teaching takes place in the well-equipped activities of daily living suite, with adjoining seminar room. This includes a simulated bathroom, bedroom and kitchen. In addition, there is a practical room and group work room.

There is a requirement throughout the course for you to complete successfully 1,000 hours of practice placements on which you are assessed for clinical and professional competence by a trained practice placement educator.

How you are assessed

You are assessed on your academic work and on your practice placements. A variety of assessment methods is used throughout the course such as case studies, assignments, presentations and practical and written examinations. Successful completion of these assessments demonstrates your ability to meet the Health and Care Professions Council standards of 'proficiency'.