Unit rationale, description and aim
Understanding the factors that influence quality of life, health and well-being for people with disabilities is important for occupational therapists because of the profession’s focus on participation in everyday occupations and roles. In this unit, students examine the social context of disability by exploring key environmental factors identified in the International Classification of Functioning Disability and Health (ICF) including community attitudes, policies, legislation, health service delivery and barriers to participation. Students will examine and reflect on the role that occupational therapists, other allied health professionals, families, communities, and government agencies play in enabling occupational participation.
This unit builds on the experience and personal development gained by students in the unit OTHY211 by undertaking 25 hours of Community Engagement spread over the semester. In OTHY204 students collaboratively set and work towards an individually meaningful goal with an individual during Community Engagement, and consider the social and environmental factors that might influence that person’s participation in their local community. This unit includes learning outcomes from the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Curriculum Framework (HCF, 2014), specifically addressing the HCF Cultural Capabilities - Respect and Communicate.
The overall aim of this unit is for students to understand the social construction of disability and the role of occupational therapists in enabling occupational participation.
Learning outcomes
To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.
Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.
Explore the graduate capabilities.
Reflect on the role of the occupational therapist,...
Learning Outcome 01
Apply the International Classification of Function...
Learning Outcome 02
Examine current social theories that impact on pol...
Learning Outcome 03
Critique the impact of services, systems, policies...
Learning Outcome 04
HCF 2.2 - Examine Aboriginal and Torres Strait Isl...
Learning Outcome 05
HCF 7.2 - Analyse how knowledge of improvements in...
Learning Outcome 06
Content
The construction of disability and its relationship to Occupational Therapy including:
- Use of occupational therapy models and processes
- Social determinants of health and well-being
- Person-centeredness
- Strengths-based communication
- Defining and describing disability
- International Classification of Functioning Disability and Health (ICF)
- Occupational participation and inclusion
- The social construction of health, illness and disability
- The influence of culture, family and connection to country on participation for First Peoples
Theories informing societal attitudes and values
Historical perspectives
Human services and disability
Social reform
The social model of disability
Empowerment and self-determination
Service systems, policies and supports
Describing and evaluating environments for people in service systems
Issues for carers and families
Natural supports, networks and relationships
The inter-relationship between environment, health, participation and disability
Advocacy
Legislation
Community living
Employment and vocation
National Disability Insurance Scheme & National Disability Insurance Agency
Inter-professional collaboration and the multidisciplinary team
Products and technology
The impact of the natural and built environment on participation
Assessment strategy and rationale
A range of assessment procedures will be used to meet the unit learning outcomes and develop ACU graduate attributes. The assessment strategy includes: a written assignment (Assessment 1), a case-based group oral presentation (Assessment 2) and a written reflective piece (Assessment 3). This strategy will enable students to demonstrate their understanding of the social context of disability and the role Occupational Therapists, other allied health professionals, families, communities and government agencies play in enabling occupational participation. The assessments in this unit are scaffolded to enable students to adopt a person centred approach, starting with a focus on individual goal setting and intervention planning through development of an individual plan for supporting occupational participation and community engagement activities; extending out to consider the influence of broader social factors, including service systems, policies and supports on opportunities for individual participation through a case-based group oral presentation; and finishing with a reflection on individual and social factors impacting on participation for individuals encountered during community engagement.
Assessment 2 is a graded hurdle because it is the only assessment in this unit that evaluates students' achievement of LO6. Student groups need to achieve a grade of at least 50% in this assessment to pass the unit. Student groups who achieve a grade lower than 50% in this assessment will be provided one further attempt at this assessment.
Submission of community engagement documentation is a pass/fail ungraded hurdle requirement as these documents provide evidence of satisfactory completion of professional practice requirements in the Bachelor of Occupational Therapy. Keeping records of students' professional practice education performance and hours is an accreditation requirement of the program.
To pass this unit, students must demonstrate achievement of every unit learning outcome, pass hurdle tasks, and obtain a minimum mark of 50%..
Overview of assessments
Assessment 1. Written Assignment Students will de...
Assessment 1. Written Assignment
Students will demonstrate skills in gathering and presenting material related to evaluating the impact of social and environmental factors on occupational participation and communication for a client with a disability.
30%
Assessment 2. Case-based group presentation: stud...
Assessment 2. Case-based group presentation: students will deliver a group oral presentation examining the barriers and enablers to the NDIS supporting occupational participation for First Peoples
30%
Graded Hurdle
Assessment 3. Post Unit Critical Reflection: Stud...
Assessment 3. Post Unit Critical Reflection:
Students will write a reflection about their community engagement experience using concepts which have shaped their understanding of working with people with disabilities.
40%
Completion of Community Engagement hours includin...
Completion of Community Engagement hours including:
- Completion of an NDIS Worker Orientation Module
- Completion of Pre-Community Engagement Documentation
- Community Engagement Timesheet
Pass/Fail
Hurdle Requirement
Learning and teaching strategy and rationale
Learning and teaching strategies for this unit are designed to actively engage students in constructing an understanding of factors influencing occupational participation for people with disability and the role of occupational therapists and other professionals in supporting this participation. The strategy adopts a constructivist learning approach where students acquire and apply new knowledge to gain a deeper level of understanding across the semester. Through lectures, tutorials and self-directed learning students will acquire knowledge of the social model of disability and the ICF as a conceptual framework for understanding and analysing the social context of disability, and the individual and environmental factors which impact on occupational participation. Students use online case studies and the ICF framework in group-based tutorial activities to explore individual and environmental factors impacting on occupational participation.
Students will develop their understanding of the impact of services, systems and policies on occupational participation for people with disability in Australia. Weekly readings, lectures and tutorials focus on the National Disability Insurance Scheme and its role in supporting occupational participation. Students will apply their knowledge to develop group-based presentations on the barriers and enablers to the NDIS supporting occupational participation for First Peoples.
Throughout the semester students will apply their learning in real-life by setting and working towards an individually meaningful goal with a person with disability during community engagement. They reflect on their experience of collaborative goal setting during community engagement regularly with peers in tutorials, and in their final assessment piece.
Australian occupational therapy competency standards (AOTCS) 2018
Australian occupational therapy competency standards (AOTCS) 2018 developed within this unit are: