DEVELOPING A NEW QUALIFIED OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY PROGRAM IN UKRAINE: А NEEDS ASSESSMENT

Abstract

Topicality. Assessment of the needs of stakeholders involved in the creation of a new educational program “Erotherapy”. Purpose and task. A needs assessment in Developing a new qualified occupational therapy program in Ukraine. Materials and methods. The research was conducted using questionnaires and written interviews. The respondents in the study were 180 students majoring in “Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy” at three universities and 40 stakeholders in potential occupational therapy jobs. Research results were analyzed using descriptive statistics and case studies. Results results. Most students have found that occupational therapy is associated with physical therapy. Important for the success of the occupational therapist profession in Ukraine, students consider: skills of interaction with others, knowledge of “occupational therapy methods”, “related sciences” and “human nature”, “positive attitude towards people with disabilities”. Students prefer to work with people with physical disabilities. 99% of students emphasize the importance of acquiring practical skills during classroom practical classes, 91% – during practice. The decisive factors in choosing the profession of occupational therapist are: intrinsic motivation, desire to care for people, public awareness of occupational therapy. The stakeholder survey identified three topics: dissatisfaction with the existing health care and rehabilitation system; the need to raise public awareness of occupational therapy; the need for evidence-based training in occupational therapy. Conclusions. According to the results of the study, we have identified three aspects that need to be considered when developing and implementing a new educational program in occupational therapy within the UKROTHE project: the need for practice-oriented education; the need to raise awareness and information exchange on occupational therapy in Ukraine; the possibility of expanding the focus of occupational therapy in Ukraine, which is still inspired by the medical model of rehabilitation.