Faculty Preparation for Teaching in Occupational Therapy: Current State and Future Needs.

IMPORTANCE: Results of this study are helpful for the development of new faculty members who may have been trained as clinicians but not necessarily as academicians. OBJECTIVE: To determine occupational therapy faculty perceptions of their preparation for a teaching role, evaluate professional development activities in which educators currently engage, and identify teaching and learning topics most needed in future training activities. DESIGN: Quantitative, descriptive survey. SETTING: Educational institutions across the United States. PARTICIPANTS: Occupational therapy and occupational therapy assistant faculty (N = 449). OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: A survey was created, pilot tested, and distributed. Questions were related to respondents' institutional requirements and support for faculty development, developmental activities in which respondents participated, comfort levels with select teaching responsibilities, and topics of interest for additional development. RESULTS: Results show that training related to teaching and instructional design is not required but is highly encouraged at most educational institutions. Although most institutions do provide financial support for development opportunities outside of the institution, informal meetings are the predominant development activities both offered and used by faculty. Respondents cited learning how to develop test questions, designing course assignments, and learning about teaching methods and techniques as topics about which they would most like to gain more knowledge. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: These results inform a meaningful and necessary plan to train new occupational therapy faculty members as academicians and to ensure continuing development of experienced faculty for optimal performance and retention. What This Article Adds: This report provides faculty and administrators with a starting point for the provision of faculty development content that has the potential not only to improve teaching skills but also to increase faculty self-confidence and retention.

The lived experiences of health science graduate students with anxiety and depression.

Health science graduate programs are intensive experiences in students' lives which can contribute to perceived symptoms of anxiety and/or depression. The consequent impact of these symptoms can have an overall effect on the graduate students' ability to participate in their daily lives, along with their program of study. The purpose of this study was to understand the lived experiences of health science graduate students who experience perceived signs and symptoms of anxiety and/or depression. An open-ended, qualitative phenomenological survey was used to understand the experiences of 56 Doctor of Occupational Therapy, Doctor of Physical Therapy, and Doctor of Pharmacy students at a university in the southeastern United States. Three themes were identified from the data: the cyclic effect of symptoms and triggers; the importance of support systems; and the benefit of coping skill utilization. Future research is needed to understand the effects of preventive and rehabilitative measures to address health science graduate students' mental health.

Self-Reflection as a Support to Evidence-Based Practice: A Grounded Theory Exploration.

The purpose of this study was to explore how reflective practice is experienced by occupational therapists. Thirty participants were purposefully sampled to explore reflective practice experiences using a critical reflection inquiry model as a theoretical framework. Grounded theory using a constant comparative analysis method was used to analyze interview data. Three categories emerged: triggers to reflection, depth of reflection, and actions taken. The frequency of statements compared across survey groups showed that participants with high reflection behaviors made more critical reflections, used steps of the EBP cycle, and took actions to correct practice. Results inform practice in three ways: (1) practitioner experiences were analyzed through the complete reflective practice construct, (2) findings indicated that greater depth of reflective thinking promotes EBP use and actions taken to correct practice, and (3) narrative content analysis was found to be a credible method of assessing reflection within practice narratives, suggesting it as useful for education and promoting continuing competency.

Occupational Therapists' Implementation of Evidence-Based Practice: A Cross Sectional Survey.

Evidence-based practice (EBP) implementation has been associated with quality health care outcomes, yet only a small proportion of occupational therapists implement EBP. We conducted a cross-sectional survey measuring EBP implementation, skill and knowledge, self-reflection behavior, and practice demographics to clarify implementation of EBP and factors acting as supports. A random sample of occupational therapists practicing in the U.S. was invited to participate; 578 surveys were included in the final analysis. Participants implemented EBP less than 1 time over the previous 8 weeks; EBP use was highest in those with a doctorate (p = .002) and high self-reflection behavior (p = .001); EBP use was marginally higher in those with organizational support (p = .008; p = .009), time for EBP (p = .009), and access to full text articles (p = .006). Further investigation of how reflective practice and levels of doctoral education support EBP use are recommended.

Occupational Therapy and Veteran Suicide: A Call to Action.

Suicide in the U.S. military veteran population is an epidemic with a wide-ranging impact on individuals, families, and society. Death by suicide is preventable. The purpose of this article is to ignite a professional discussion about veteran suicide, a serious mental health issue that is underrepresented in the occupational therapy research literature. Occupational therapy practitioners respond to the changing needs of populations and promote preventive measures to improve health. Actively exploring occupational therapy's role in suicide prevention is a professional responsibility aligned with tenets of the Centennial Vision and Vision 2025. Applying the concept of the scholarship of integration, the authors present a case for the inclusion of suicide prevention training as a professional competency and explore opportunities to address suicide risk through the use of evidence-based interventions for posttraumatic stress disorder, combat stress, and depression. Professional implications include the need to advance professional knowledge through education, advocacy, and intervention research targeting the veteran population.