NEWS FEATURE
RCOT announces the UK’s top 10 priorities
for occupational therapy research
The Royal College of Occupational Therapists is pleased
to announce that the top 10 priorities for occupational
therapy research in the UK have been identified.
These priorities will set the research agenda for
occupational therapy in the future and address the unanswered
questions that matter the most to people who access and
deliver occupational therapy services.
Our focus now is to encourage and support members to
undertake and contribute to research studies that answer the
specific questions that will help to address the priorities.
Funding available through the RCOT Research Foundation
will be focused on supporting studies addressing the top 10 (see
box below). We will also be working to influence the opening up
of external research funding opportunities.
Having this clear agenda for research takes RCOT a step
closer to achieving its vision for research, which is to have, within
the next decade, a UK-wide culture that embraces engaging in
and with research as every occupational therapist’s business
embedded within the profession.
Each priority is an overarching summary question within which
there may be several questions to be answered by research.
Throughout the project, RCOT’s focus has been to ensure
that people who access occupational therapy, their carers,
occupational therapists and other health and care professionals
have been involved in every step.
We were able to achieve this by partnering with the James Lind
Alliance (JLA) in a Priority Setting Partnership to follow JLA’s wellrespected
and inclusive process.
The first stage of the process was to find out what questions
people had about occupational therapy that research could answer.
After checking that they truly were unanswered questions, people
were then asked to prioritise these questions, first through shortlisting
in a nationwide survey and finally through reaching agreement in a
final prioritisation workshop.
Further details on the priorities and the process followed to
identify them can also be found on the website, alongside a video of
Dr Jo Watson, RCOT assistant director – education and research,
talking about why these priorities are so important for setting the
future direction of research for occupational therapy in the UK:
www.rcot.co.uk/otpsp.
Top 10 occupational therapy research priorities
Rank
Question
1 How does occupational therapy make a difference and have impact on everyday lives?
2 How can occupational therapists ensure that person-centred practice is central to how they work?
3 How can occupational therapists work more effectively with the family and carers of people who access services?
4 What are the long-term benefits of occupational therapy intervention?
5 What are the benefits or impact of occupational therapy in primary care settings? (e.g. services delivered by your local
general practice surgery, community pharmacy, dental and optometry (eye health) services)
6 How can occupational therapy services be more inclusive of both mental and physical health?
7 What is the role of occupational therapy in supporting self-management? (e.g. helping people with illness to manage
their health on a day-to-day basis)
8 What is the role or impact of occupational therapy in reducing hospital admissions?
9 How can occupational therapists work most effectively with other professionals to improve outcomes for people who
access services? (for example multidisciplinary teams, commissioners, community agencies)
10 What is the cost-effectiveness of occupational therapy services?
14 OTnews August 2020