British Journal of Occupational Therapy

The Casson Memorial Lecture 2006, given on 22 June at the 30th Annual Conference of the College of Occupational Therapists held at the Cardiff International Arena, Cardiff, Wales.

Promoting job satisfaction in a workplace can make a positive contribution towards the recruitment and retention of staff. The aim of this study, using a hermeneutical phenomenological approach, was to investigate what occupational therapy managers did to have a positive and a negative influence on the job satisfaction of their staff.

It was clear that managers played a key role in influencing job satisfaction through their actions and behaviours. In particular, managers who demonstrated care and support towards their staff, while at the same time demonstrating that they were strong advocates and able to make decisions for the good of the department rather than for the benefit of the individual, influenced job satisfaction positively. Job dissatisfaction was strongest when managers were seen to treat staff differently, which was construed as a demonstration of bias stemming from favouritism.

The results from this study suggest that staff access to benefits, such as flexible working conditions and educational funding, should be transparent and guided by clear policies.

Qualitative researchers contest and reject the criteria used by quantitative researchers when evaluating their work: those of reliability, validity and generalisability. Instead, qualitative researchers have developed alternative criteria responsive to their specific research ideals. These criteria encompass various dimensions of ‘rigour’, ‘ethical integrity’ and ‘artistry’.

This article attempts to show something of the range of evaluative criteria available to qualitative researchers, arguing that their choice of criteria needs to be compatible with the special nature of the research in question (its methodology, aims and assumptions). Occupational therapists are encouraged to be clear, thoughtful and reflexive about their position and values when evaluating their research. To this end, recent occupational therapy research is reviewed to identify the criteria that authors favour. I also proffer my own reflexive voice towards critically evaluating my approach in this article.

Within the United Kingdom the number of individuals abusing alcohol is continuing to increase. Alcohol abuse is linked with long-term health problems, with the potential to have an impact on work, relationships and the ability to function in daily life. Occupational therapists working within general hospital environments have regular contact with alcohol abusers, although there is limited evidence of effective interventions in this clinical setting.

This article reports on a feasibility study, which investigated the potential role for occupational therapists in delivering brief motivational counselling to alcohol abusers admitted to medical wards. Consideration is given to the practicality of delivering such an intervention. The outcome measures used were the Fast Alcohol Screening Tool (FAST), self-reported alcohol consumption and participant's rationale for change. A small sample of 40 participants was recruited. Although the results presented are not statistically significant, this feasibility study will be important in assisting clinicians to plan future research in this area.

The job clinic model was established in Northern Ireland in 1992. It was initiated by mental health occupational therapists and represented an interagency model of vocational rehabilitation (McCrum et al 1997). Occupational therapy vocational practice has evolved significantly since then, with a regional variation in service delivery, which necessitated review. There was a recognition that practice needed to be examined to develop services in a unified professional way.

This paper gives an overview of occupational therapy mental health vocational service provision in Northern Ireland. The authors sought information from 13 regional trusts, which demonstrated that vocational work is a very active part of occupational therapy provision but that there are also opportunities to develop services based on current evidence. This paper makes recommendations and highlights the action required to take forward occupational therapy vocational rehabilitation in Northern Ireland.

Personal presentation is a way of expressing one's identity. The appearance of the student or the occupational therapist in the workplace is part of his or her professional persona. Discomfort and debate can occur when an individual's appearance conflicts with role expectations. It is part of the occupational therapy educator's task to teach students the principles of professional behaviour and presentation.

Based on a lunchtime discussion between three occupational therapy lecturers and underpinned by theory, this opinion piece presents some of the arguments surrounding the presentation of the self and what is required in order to work most effectively alongside the service user.