14th November 2007

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Occupational therapy staff and students at the University of Ulster have been carrying out ‘health MOTs’ on members of the public to help promote the profession.

The tests included checking work/life balance, hand grip strength, energy consumption levels and steering skill using a wheelchair.

Ulster students organised a “Strongest Man and Woman in Jordanstown” competition based on the results of the hand grip test. Some of the students also set up a display illustrating various aspects of occupational therapy in the No Alibis bookshop on the Jordanstown campus.

During National Occupational Therapy week, the stand was visited by Julia Scott, Chief Executive of the College of Occupational Therapists, Dee Christie, Chair of Council of the College of Occupational Therapists and Fiona Fraser, Student Officer for the College of Occupational Therapists.   

The event was organised to tell people about occupational therapy as a career.  Occupational therapists help people who are ill, disabled or feeling the effects of ageing to do the things that are important to them – such as preparing a meal, working, or undertaking a favourite hobby.

They help people in many ways, based on each individual patient’s needs and lifestyle. Their work involves a wide range of advice and assistance, from helping to ensure that the workplace or home is user friendly, for example, through the installation of wheelchair ramps, to assisting people to learn new ways of doing things more in keeping with their condition.

Some occupational therapists work in schools to help children overcome writing difficulties and other learning challenges.  Others may help people with mental health problems such as depression, drug addiction or with suicidal thoughts.

There are over 26,000 qualified occupational therapists in the UK and occupational therapy courses are available at 31 universities in the UK.  Details of these are available on the College of Occupational Therapists’ website www.cot.org.uk .  The College has 29,000 members, including students and support staff.  

For further information, please contact:

Press Office, Department of Communication and Development
Tel: 028 9036 6178
Email: pressoffice@ulster.ac.uk