The role of the occupational therapist in Jordan: a survey of the members of the healthcare team exploring their knowledge about occupational therapy in rehabilitation hospitals.
OBJECTIVE
Occupational therapy (OT) is a developing profession that has only been introduced to Jordanian hospitals 18 years ago. The main objective of this study was to explore the level of knowledge the healthcare team members in Jordanian rehabilitation hospitals have about OT.


METHODS
Two hundred and fifty questionnaires were distributed to different members in the healthcare team in three major hospitals in Jordan. One hundred fifty-three questionnaires were returned and used for analysis.


RESULTS
Collectively, the results revealed a fair knowledge level about OT among the healthcare team members in rehabilitation, who stated that the main responsibilities of this profession were rehabilitation for activities of daily living, hand therapy and increasing the quality of life for disabled people. Furthermore, the majority of the respondents agreed that OT is a vital profession that plays an important role in rehabilitation teams, and expressed their expectations of developing standards and regulations for this profession.


CONCLUSIONS
Actions should be channelled towards educating members of the team about OT through university curriculum. It is critical that the Jordanian Ministry of Health establishes specific statements and regulations which clarify the role of the OT within different settings of the healthcare system.
AlHeresh
Rawan
R
Faculty of Rehabilitation Sciences, Department of Occupational Therapy, The University of Jordan, Dahyet Alamir Rashid, Amman, Jordan. Rawan_alheresh@hotmail.com
Nikopoulos
Christos K
CK
D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002983:Clinical Competence; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003906:Developing Countries; D006233:Persons with Disabilities / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D005260:Female; D006282:Health Personnel; D006782:Hospitals, Special; D006801:Humans; D007597:Jordan; D008297:Male; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000458:organization & administration*; D015397:Program Evaluation; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires