Collaborative Occupational Therapy: Teachers' Impressions of the Partnering for Change (P4C) Model

ABSTRACT

Aims: Occupational therapists (OTs) often face barriers when trying to collaborate with teachers in school-based settings. Partnering for change (P4C), a collaborative practice model designed to support children with developmental coordination disorder, could potentially support all students with special needs. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore how teachers experience OT services delivered using the P4C model to support children with a variety of special needs. Methods: P4C was implemented at one elementary school in Courtenay, British Columbia. Eleven teachers participated in two focus groups and a one-on-one interview to gather descriptive, qualitative data. Grounded theory techniques were used for data analysis. Results: Four themes (collaborating in the thick of it all, learning and taking risks, managing limited time and resources, and appreciating responsive OT support) represented teachers' experiences of P4C. Conclusions: Teachers strongly preferred collaborative OT services based on the P4C model. Students with a variety of special needs were supported within their classrooms as teachers learned new strategies from the OT and found ways to embed these strategies into their daily routines.

KEYWORDS:

• Collaborative consultation
• paediatric occupational therapy
• school-based practice
• service delivery model
• students with special needs

Acknowledgments

We appreciate the contributions of the school district physiotherapist, school district autism support teacher, classroom teachers, and school administration who so willingly supported and participated in this project. Thank you also to Dr. Chris Carpenter who provided consultation and advice on the research design. Results of this study were shared with University of British Columbia Master of Rehabilitation Science graduate students and faculty during an on-line webinar presentation in December 2015. Results were also shared with therapists and administrators from various Canadian school districts during a webinar presentation in May 2016.

Declaration of Interest

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

About the Authors

Andrea L. Wilson is an occupational therapist in School District No. 71 (Comox Valley), British Columbia. She was a student in the Master of Science in Rehabilitation Science Online Program through the University of British Columbia when this research project was completed as partial fulfillment of her MRSc degree. Susan R. Harris is a Professor Emerita in the Department of Physical Therapy and an Associate Member in the Department of Pediatrics, both within the Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. She supervised Ms. Wilson's final research project that is represented in this article.