Occupational therapists enable individuals, groups, organizations and communities to choose, organize and perform occupations that they find useful or meaningful in their environment. Health is also viewed broadly as the ability and opportunity to live a full life with meaningful occupations in supportive environments. Occupational therapists work for equity and justice in practical ways. Occupational therapists work with individuals, groups, agencies, organizations, governments and universities in publicly-funded or private practice. Experiential, participatory approaches are used to identify and prioritize goals in everyday occupations, and to analyze the physical, mental, spiritual, and environmental strengths and barriers for realizing those goals.
Collaborative planning is advocated to maximize choice in decision making.
To be accountable, occupational therapists involve people in evaluating both the processes and outcomes of occupational therapy. Occupational therapists emphasize team approaches in which lay people and professionals, individuals, families, teachers, employers, managers, communities, and organizations, share power by working as partners. Drawing from a common core of knowledge of occupation and enabling approaches, daily practice varies greatly depending on culture, setting, system, funding, clientele, programme, etc. Graduates will be able to adapt their knowledge and skills to practice in any setting, industry to medical, domestic to international, with individual, group or organizational clients. An emphasis on life long learning is the foundation for graduates to incorporate new knowledge to continue to improve the effectiveness and efficacy of their practice.