Developing a strengths based curriculum

A changing health care system in the Netherlands requires a change in our curriculum. The change is more than a change of subjects, it requires a different approach of our future occupational therapists towards their clients... [ view full abstract ]

A changing health care system in the Netherlands requires a change in our curriculum. The change is more than a change of subjects, it requires a different approach of our future occupational therapists towards their clients and therefore a change in our approach to the students. Occupational therapists, we think, should no longer have a main focus on deficits, but a focus on their clients’ self-reliance , talents and strengths. If we want the students to approach their clients in such a way, the best way to learn this, seems to be approaching the students in the same way.
We are developing an education that is challenging and stimulating, where the students are required to be very motivated and need to perform to their best abilities. We believe this will much improve the education.
However, this choice results in one major issue: If we want them to focus on their strengths and talents how do we cope with students’ deficits? How do we know they develop all the required competencies, so we can be sure graduating OT’s can work in every field of health care, meet the requirements of the WFOT and the Dutch Standards?
In a workshop we would like to present our new curriculum (starting in September 2016), explain how we try to shape the Strengths Based Approach in our curriculum and discuss the issue on coping with students’ deficits.