Occupational Therapy News OTnews October 2018 | Page 3

T
here’s something of a recurring theme around overcoming
your professional and personal worries and fears in this
issue.
For the last four years, Judith Harman has been developing and
managing a fully intergated multidsciplinary team of health and care
staff. She reflects on the challenges of leadership, policy and
professional identity, and the ‘very genuine’ fears and emotions that
need to be recognised and acknowledged when going through the
integration process. Turn to page 24 for Judith’s reflections.
As RCOT’s then-education liaison officer, during the first half of
this year Amie Mowlam-Tett visited 28 of the 32 universities in the
UK that teach occupational therapy and spoke to a number of
students about taking their first step into full-time employment.
For many, leaving the education system and transitioning from a
student to a qualified occupational therapist triggers a raft of worries
and concerns. Here, Amy sets out to reassure new graduates that they are not alone, as she shares her own
experience of starting out in her first role, and talks to other new graduates for their advice.
Focusing on the ‘rewards and pitfalls in research’, on page 40, Solei Naisbett-Jones and Katrina
Bannigan share the learning from the recent research-themed #OTalk, prompted by questions on whether
any research jobs are financially secure, are they all fixed or short term, rather than permanent contracts,
and does research work have to be combined with another role? The occupational therapists involved
wanted to explore whether working in research is a viable option for occupational therapists and the online
discussion prompted some useful suggestions.
Next, Rachel White talks to OTnews about her delight at finally becoming a published author, and offers
some of her own personal tips for anyone thinking about starting out on a publishing journey. Initially fearful
her ideas would be rejected, turn to page 28 to read about how she overcame the challenges.
Then on page 48, Charlotte Walker, who received funding from RCOT to attend the WFOT congress in
Cape Town this year, reflects on overcoming her initial apprehension on attending ‘a conference for a
predominantly white, middle class, profession, with strong Western influence’, and whether it would
contribute to these inequalities, rather than tackle them.
On a different note, on page 22, Claire Tester, Alison Gilhooly and Wendy Greenstreet report on the
setting up of four major trauma centres in Scotland, with the aim of improving outcomes for survivors of
severe injury. They look at why the centres are needed and the work to date, including the key hallmarks of
the first two centres to open.
And finally, I report from the recent Celebration of Excellence in Occupational Therapy Awards event, held
at The Shard in London, where 23 RCOT members were celebrated for their individual achievements. It was
a real pleasure to meet everyone and I share something of their success stories on pages 14 to 21.
editor’s
comment
Tracey Samuels, Editor
If you have any feedback about this issue of OTnews, or
would like to contribute a short article or feature for a future
publication, please email me at: [e-mail]