title: Collaborative fieldwork education with student occupational therapists and student occupational therapist assistants.
abstract: The profession of occupational therapy has a long history of working collaboratively with support personnel. This paper describes the process of a fieldwork education partnership developed between the McMaster University, BHSc (OT) Program and the Mohawk College, Occupational Therapist Assistant and Physical Therapist Assistant Program. Eight student occupational therapists and eight student occupational therapist assistants learned together in a variety of fieldwork settings, either in pairs or in groups. Both groups of students kept weekly journals of the experience and completed a post placement questionnaire. The journals were inductively analysed using a retrospective content analysis. The four emergent themes identified from the data are learning about each other's role, collaborative learning, impact on client care and future practice, and resistance to roles. Recommendations for future collaborations are discussed.
authors.affiliation: School of Rehabilitation Science, McMaster University Institute of Applied Health Sciences, 1400 Main St. W., Hamilton, ON L8S 1C7. jungb@mcmaster.ca
authors.forename: Bonny
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Jung
authors.forename: Sandy
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sainsbury
authors.forename: Rosa Maria
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Grum
authors.forename: Seanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wilkins
authors.forename: Joyce
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tryssenaar
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D008297:Male; D009788:Occupational Therapy / Q000193:education*; D018802:Patient-Centered Care; D011231:Preceptorship