Occupational therapists' experience of working with immigrant clients in mental health care

Abstract

Sweden's cultural diversity generates considerable challenges for occupational therapists. The aim of this study was to explore experiences and perceptions of occupational therapists working with immigrant psychiatric clients from the Middle East region. The study included interviews with eight occupational therapists employed in mental health care and working in a variety of settings. The data collection and analysis were carried out in accordance with the grounded theory approach. One core category, “the challenges of the multicultural therapeutic journey—a journey on a winding road” was identified. The core category included three categories: dilemmas in clinical practice, feelings and thoughts, and building cultural bridges, in turn comprising sub-categories and components. The results showed that the many dilemmas influencing effective multicultural occupational therapy were cultural, societal, and professional in nature. The dilemmas influenced feelings and thoughts, in turn influencing both motivation for seeking cultural knowledge and choice of adequate strategies in which the multicultural therapeutic relationship could develop. The results imply that culturally congruent occupational therapy practice needs to be further developed and more research is needed on how cultural issues can be met in occupational therapy practice.

Key words::

• Cultural diversity
• culturally congruent occupational therapy
• Middle Eastern immigrants
• multicultural therapeutic relationship

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the occupational therapists in mental healthcare for their participation in this study. The study was funded by Skåne County Council, Malmö University, the Lindhaga Foundation and the Vårdal Institute.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.