College of Occupational Therapists Stock- take and Showcase of Social Inclusion and Equalities Genevieve Smyth Cowdray H

1. College of Occupational TherapistsStock- take and Showcase of Social Inclusion and EqualitiesGenevieve SmythCowdray Hall, 23rd February 2009

2. Introduction • Relationship between social inclusion and occupational therapy • The College of Occupational Therapists response to social inclusion • Socially inclusive occupational therapy practice • The future

3. Occupation and Health Man, through the use of his hands, as they are energised by his mind and will, can influence the state of his own health. (Mary Reilly, 1962) A human being is a human doing. (Ann Wilcox 1998)

4. Social Inclusion and OT • “Its being able to go down the pub, have a relationship, have a place of my own and a job” • Occupational therapists work with people of all ages, helping them to carry out the activities that they need or want to do, to lead healthy and fulfilling lives. • Work, leisure and everyday self care activities

5. The College’s Response • Secondment to the National Social Inclusion Programme • Recovering Ordinary Lives –the strategy for occupational therapy in mental health services 2007-2017. (COT 2006) • OT interventions should move the client in the direction of a fuller participation in society through the performance of occupations that are appropriate to her or his age, social and cultural background, interests and aspirations. (COT 2006)

6. COT’s Mental Health Strategy

7. 1 in 10 (talk to someone)

8. The Community Orchard

9. The Qualitative Experience • The response of the social environment “It’s a sort of a …certain coldness from people.” • The need for opportunities to be active “Cos there’s nothing to do innit.” • The right level of demand “I enrolled in an art class but there was a considerable amount of homework and I couldn’t concentrate so I dropped the course.” • The value of occupation and being active “ I’m all nervous but I have to do it anyway just to live, try and live a life.”

10. The future • Recession as a test bed for social inclusion • Post National Services Framework for mental health • Cross boundary and partnership working • Recovering Ordinary Lives 2007-2017

11. Conclusion • Links between occupation and social inclusion • Examples of innovative OT practice • Importance of listening to the everyday experiences of service users • Future barriers and enablers for social inclusion

12. References COT (2006) Recovering Ordinary Lives. The strategy of occupational therapy in mental health services 2007-2017. COT, London. Reilly M (1962) Occupational therapy can be one of the great ideas of the twentieth century. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 16, 300-308. Wilcox A (1998) An occupational perspective of health. Thorofare, NJ;Slack