November Forum Summary

Paediatric OT Forum (Waikato)
25.11.2008 at Hillcrest High School

Present:
Jenny Carty, Dot Roberts, Stephanie Hessell, Cassandra Hopkins,
Annette Jensen, Rita Robinson, Lisa Palmer.

Agenda:
Welcome

1. OT Forum:-
• Should we / not
• Group
• Format
• Time
• Venue
• Organisation
• Name

2. Show and Tell

3. Rita 

Minutes:
1. All agreed that such a forum would be worthwhile. Some uncertainty expressed with regards the relevance for OT’s unable to attend the session. Decided that feedback would be provided to all Paediatric Occupational Therapist's via Rita (see discussion later).
Group – to include all OT’s with special interest in paediatrics, not to be confined to those currently employed with-in realm of Paediatrics or members of NZAOT etc.
Format – speakers and or reps from companies to be included but to be confined to topic area or theme for the meeting. All agreed that the session should be focused on learning, advancement of skill or knowledge and / or forum for confirming good practice in specified area.
Time – General preference towards 9 to 1p.m. slot and 2 xs per annum (max) during the early part of Term 2 and the latter part of Term 3.
Venue – Flexibility thought important to allow arrangements in accordance to subject, number of attendees etc.
Organisation – Agreed that a small committee could make arrangements for each meeting, rather than leave to individual organisations.
Name – Paediatric OT Forum proposed and agreed.

2. Show and Tell
Handmade knickers made by Pat Alderton (RTLB) from Otorohanga.
Eee- PC.
Camera Phone by Nokia that has software that takes a photo of text and then reads it out.
60 minute story about micro chip enhancement of brain wave or thought for typing.

Possible thoughts for next meeting included:
Sensory
Technology

3. Rita Robinson.
Feedback and session on Occupational Performance Coaching.
Information and references shared with attendees.

Mintues written by Lisa.

Medical model - when do we need to use it?

To carry on from Dots ponderings.........she was wondering if she had strayed too far from the medical model.

For me coming up with a series of questions around a topic helps clarify my thinking. Possibly we could all come up with a question to help clarify our thoughts and ponderings around this. These could then be developed at a forum day.

My questions is how can we do it all?, hold all the information that the medical model contains ( and stay up to date with it) and as well as all the other information we need to stay current. I also need to ask is that our job? When is it our job? In some settings yes? In others no. Or would it be better to empower people to ask the source directly what medical information means?

Or another way to think about it is, if you follow a issue from an occupational performance problem down to performance component level then you would move from an occupational frame of reasoning into a medical model frame of reasoning.

So possibly Dot you haven't strayed, you just are able to problem solve it before needing to get to a performance deficit ( medical model) level?

Rita