ERGOPRA1 Placement - Physical Health: Treatment and Re-/Habilitation Course description

Occupational therapists help people with disabilities in order to facilitate their participation in activities which are important in daily life, at work or in society at large. Their work can focus on assessment, treatment and rehabilitation or habilitation in the specialist health service or rehabilitation institutions in the municipal health service. This means cooperation and communication with users, next of kin, colleagues and other relevant bodies. Through systematic work and methodical use of activity, the occupational therapist contributes to the possibility of activity and participation. Occupational therapy takes an evidenced-based approach.

The course consists of practical training in the field of somatic health. Topics, theories, issues, processes, tools and methods from previous courses, in particular the course ERGO1300 Physical Health - Occupation and Participation, form the basis for developing new theoretical and practical knowledge central to the practical training establishment in question. Reflection on practical training and clinical reasoning will contribute to personal and academic development and strengthen professional identity, insight and knowledge.

Half of the class will take the course ERGOPRA1 before ERGOPRA2, while the other half takes ERGOPRA2 before ERGOPRA1. The learning outcomes of these two courses must be seen in relation to each other, as it is of great importance whether ERGOPRA 1 is taken before or after ERGOPRA 2. Progression is expected from the first to the second practical training period, as outlined in the learning outcome descriptions below.

The course consists of the following subject areas from the national curriculum, specified below as the number of credits:

• Rehabilitative work (8 ECTS)
• Habilitative work (3 ECTS)
• Therapeutic work (3 ECTS)
• Ethics (1 ECTS)

• Passed the first year of the programme
• Completed first aid course, within the last three years
• If the student takes ERGOPRA2 before ERGOPRA1, they must pass ERGOPRA2 before starting on this course.

After completing the course, the student is expected to have achieved the following learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and competence:

Knowledge

The student

• is capable of describing the position of occupational therapy within the practical training establishment´s framework and organisation on different levels
• is capable of giving an account of how organisational and structural circumstances affect occupational therapy in the practical training establishment (spring)
• has knowledge of relevant user groups, academic issues and occupational therapy methods in the practical training establishment

Skills

The student is capable of

• reflecting on the contents of the service provided in the practical training establishment
• using a client-centred approach
• communicating in a therapeutic manner with users
• using and documenting work methods in occupational therapy processes
• using methods specific to the profession and mapping tools and treatment in the practical training establishment
• using and giving grounds for the use of activity-based activity analysis
• looking up and using relevant literature to assess patients/users and issues in the practical training establishment
• looking up and conveying scientific articles relevant to the practical training establishment (autumn)
• looking up, conveying and critically assessing scientific articles relevant to the practical training establishment (spring)
• discussing theory, practice and ethics by using clinical reasoning (autumn)
• using theory, practice and ethics by using clinical reasoning (spring)
• reflecting on their practice and demonstrating the ability to correct therapeutic approaches in line with supervision (autumn)
• critically assessing their practice and demonstrating the ability to correct therapeutic approaches in line with supervision and identifying their own needs in terms of professional development (spring)

Competence

The student is capable of

• identifying professional and ethical issues and dilemmas (autumn)
• identifying and reflecting on professional and ethical issues and dilemmas (spring)
• practising in accordance with professional ethical guidelines and applicable legislation
• taking responsibility and demonstrating initiative, cooperation skills and independence during practical training
• documenting and presenting user-related work both orally and in writing
• cooperating with other professional groups and parties

The course comprises ten weeks of practical training including a clinical exam in the placement establishment. The students will carry out occupational therapy work relevant to the practical training establishment. Supervision and clinical reasoning are key to reinforcing the student´s learning process and to integrate theory and practice during practical training. Sourcing relevant articles and presenting them for discussion in the practical training establishment is part of this process.

Approved by the Doctoral Committee 24 May 2018. Minor changes approved 27.04.2020.

This PhD course is open for candidates at the PhD Program in Educational Sciences for Teacher Education, other PhD candidates and academic employees.

Language: English (and Norwegian, dependent on the language of participants).

This course is one of two PhD courses on Action Research. Course 2 builds on Course 1. In this second course, epistemological, methodological and ethical perspectives on action research will be presented, discussed and related to examples of research projects. Reflections on connections between epistemological conceptual frameworks and practical choices in educational action research are emphasized.

Completed Course 1, or that candidates / students can document competence equivalent to Course 1. In such cases, the student must apply for approval from the head of the program.

On completion of the course, the candidate will have achieved the following learning outcomes:

Knowledge

The candidate

• has in-depth knowledge of epistemological and methodological perspectives on Action Research projects
• has in-depth knowledge of the role of the researcher in action research projects

Skills

The candidate:

• has gained methodological competence in understanding and engaging in Action Research at a sufficiently high level to develop knowledge in his/her field of study.
• can give academically competent written presentations of a relevant topic within action research

General competence

The candidate:

• can identify and establish constructive connections between theories, empirical data, and practices based on developed methodological competence in Action Research
• has sufficient ethical competence to identify relevant ethical challenges in his/her research process.

Organised tuition is given in the form of lectures and seminars. Candidates are expected to actively participate in all the teaching activities. Candidates will receive academic supervision on writing essays.

Students are expected to read the syllabus before the course to be able to participate actively in discussions.