Trends in Australian occupational therapy practice education

Practice education is acknowledged as an essential component of professional entry level education programs. The World Federation of Occupational Therapists require education programs or courses to have a minimum of 1000... [ view full abstract ]

Practice education is acknowledged as an essential component of professional entry level education programs. The World Federation of Occupational Therapists require education programs or courses to have a minimum of 1000 hours in addition to a breadth of experience working with people of different ages and conditions and within various practice settings. In Australia there has been a significant increase in the number of universities offering occupational therapy courses and existing courses enrolling more students. With an increased demand for practice education, different practice education models are being implemented. The aim of this research project was to gain a detailed understanding of how Australian practice education was being undertaken. An electronic survey was sent to all eighteen Australian universities offering occupational therapy programs. Data was collected on twenty-eight programs including thirteen bachelor degrees with an honours option, four bachelor (Honours) degrees, eight graduate entry masters degrees and three dual degrees. Most of the practice education hours were undertaken in third and fourth years of bachelor degrees with an average of 363 hours and 544 hours respectively. For graduate entry masters courses, an average of 486 hours in the second year and 732 hours in the third year. Traditional practice education model (one therapist to one student) was still the most commonly used. Project placements are being utilised by 19 bachelor courses and eight masters programs. Nineteen bachelor programs are using simulation and twenty-three were using service-learning. Further results will be reported providing a detailed overview of practice education in Australia.