Occupational Therapy News OTnews July 2019 | Page 52

REPORT AGM
AGM reports healthy finances,
successful campaigns and no
increase in membership fee
The British Association of Occupational Therapists/Royal College of Occupational
Therapists’ (BAOT/RCOT) annual general meeting (AGM) was held in Birmingham on
17 June. Here we bring you the highlights of the meeting
D
r Patricia McClure, chair of council,
gave an overview on the organisation’s
achievements over the past year. She
was pleased to report that RCOT has
its highest ever level of membership – with nearly
33,500 members across the UK.
Visits to the website and social media channels
have grown substantially and the organisation
has launched 29 new reports and publications.
RCOT has increased its political and stakeholder
engagement across the four nations.
Campaigns and promoting the profession
The Improving Lives, Saving Money campaign
continued to capture the attention of senior
politicians and healthcare leaders, particularly the
Getting my life back and Making personalised care a
reality reports.
The former highlights the important role of
occupational therapy in mental health and wellbeing,
one of the biggest health issues of our time and how
it offers a practical and effective way forward.
As a result of the publication of these reports, a
number of senior political and healthcare leaders
were keen to see the evidence first hand and
participate in visits to services.
A profession fit for the future
As well as promoting the profession, the organisation
ensures that occupational therapists are fit for the
modern day profession. A review of the Learning
and Development Standards for Pre-Registration
Education was launched and will be published later
this year. The aim is for all programme providers to
be aligned to these standards by September 2020.
In the summer, RCOT approved its first ever
integrated masters occupational therapy degree
programme in the UK, which is a landmark moment
for the profession.
52 OTnews July 2019
Research strategy
RCOT has also been reviewing its research strategy
in order to provide a framework and strategic
direction of future research to underpin and inform
occupational therapy practice. This has led to
the development of a new RCOT Research and
Development Strategy, to be published in the
autumn.
It will inform and direct the development of the
occupational therapy profession in the UK as well
as how the role of research within the profession is
promoted. The review also highlighted the need for
new research priorities for occupational therapy in the
UK. Therefore, in January, RCOT partnered with the
James Lind Alliance to begin a project to identify the
top 10 research priorities. This is to be completed in
2020.
OT Week
Dr McClure mentioned the success of Occupational
Therapy Week 2018, which attracted an increasing
number of participants. It focused on increasing the
visibility of the profession, showcased the work of
members and demonstrated the value of occupational
therapy to the end user.
Special events were organised to engage assembly
and parliament members across Wales, Northern
Ireland and Scotland.
Other projects and member engagement
Work is ongoing on the project to provide occupational
therapy-led vocational clinics in GP surgeries. This is a
new approach supporting people with musculoskeletal
and/or mental health problems to stay in, or return to,
work. This project is funded by the Work and Health
Challenge Fund and final results will be available in
early 2020.
Dr McClure spoke about the work of the
organisation on engaging with members throughout