ABSTRACT
References 193
Occupational therapy (OT) is concerned with a person’s ability to undertake meaningful and required occupations and roles. The profession is built on the philosophical belief that functioning in meaningful and purposeful occupations and roles is necessary throughout life for maintaining health and well-being (AOTA, 2008). Historically, the paradigms underpinning the profession have evolved with paradigms recognizing occupational functioning as arising from a systemic and dynamic relationship between the attributes of the person, the physical, social and cultural environment and occupation (Letts et al., 2003). Physical and psychiatric conditions often disrupt this relationship. Occupational therapists (OTs) use rehabilitative and adaptive approaches to address occupational performance issues and maximize the functioning (Hopkins and Smith, 1993; Fisher, 2006a).
