Podcast transcript: Conversations from Conference
Vox pops :
‘I’m looking forward to networking with other OTs to find out what’s going on in their areas’
‘I’m delighted to see what’s going on in UK and around the world as well’
Dan Smith (DS):
Hello and welcome to the RCOT podcast. I’m Dan Smith
Daniela Donohoe (DD):
And I’m Daniela Donohoe.
DS:
Today’s episode was recorded at our 2019 Annual Conference where we caught up with a few members who were nice enough to let us tag along with them to a few sessions. You’ll be hearing from one of our student members:
Ben Choi (BC):
I'm Ben Choi from the University of Brighton
DD:
An occupational therapist working in Motor Neurone Disease:
Suzanne Simpson (SS):
My name's Suzanne Simpson and I'm an occupational therapist at the Walton Centre which is based in Liverpool
DS:
A lecturer in occupational therapy:
Simone Coetzee (SC):
I am Simone Coetzee and I am a lecturer at the University of Essex
DD:
And a community-based occupational therapist working in stroke, who is also a Health and Work Champion:
Elizabeth Field (EF):
My name's Elizabeth Field I'm an occupational therapist in Cornwall
DD:
So Dan – it was your 1st time at Conference how did you find it?
DS:
Yea, it was really interesting actually. There was a really great atmosphere and I think everyone was really excited to meet up with everyone from around the country, to meet up with people from different specialisms and there was a real buzz about everything. I caught the opening plenary, so I heard the speech from the Health and Social Care Minister and it was really great to hear how positive she was about occupational therapy.
DD:
Did you notice there was one topic that kept coming up in all your conversations?
Multiple voices:
social prescribing… social prescribing… social prescribing is what everybody's talking about…
DS:
Wow, so loads of interest in social prescribing! I attended session 29, which was Paul Cooper and Sarah Bodell’s session on that topic, along with our 1st guest today, Suzanne Simpson.
SS:
My name's Suzanne Simpson and I'm an occupational therapist at the Walton Centre which is based in Liverpool and I've actually quite recently moved into quite a new role so I'm funded by the MND Association motor neurone disease. And I basically we're looking at improving the psychological well-being of people living with MND. And that's kind of brought me in to the social prescribing world and personalised care.
DS:
So obviously this session that you just attended was on social prescribing . So I can that's an area of interest for you but what were your initial thoughts on that session.
SS:
Very well done. It was obviously popular. We didn't only just fill the space there were people outside as well so it's obviously a subject that a lot of OTs are interested in. I think Paul really introduced sort of what the messages are from the Royal College and Sarah kindly told us the history of how Salford University got involved in social prescribing which is quite interesting. And certainly I think she posed a few questions to the audience I think especially the one around the fact that OTs don't own occupation.
I was waiting for a few gasps in the audience because when it comes to social prescribing I think I initially, when it was around, when it was first mentioned, I was one of those OTs that how dare they? That’s occupational therapy. But actually in the role I'm doing now my view of social prescribing is completely changed in that I'm a real advocate for it.
DD:
It’s interesting to hear Suzanne address that – we know from speaking to members and conversation on social – lots on occupational therapists do feel that way. We asked RCOT’s Paul Cooper about this:
Paul Cooper:
So, to give social prescribing some context, I like to talk about personalised care. This is now coming into policy in all four nations, around choice and control in health and social care, we know that 10% of what affects our health and wellbeing is actually not around healthcare and we know that what matters to someone is important. We should be focusing on people’s strengths and matters to people, rather than what’s the matter with people. Under this banner is where social prescribing is coming in. There’s certainly a lot of press around this, in England at the moment around the long term plan and link workers, but the term social prescribing had certainly been around for a while and we at the Royal College have been talking about it for several years. Some have expressed concern that social prescribing is a risk to our profession, I would say it’s more of an opportunity really. This is part of our practice and always has been. But, by saying we’re social prescribers alone, I think we’re underselling our experience, our education and our evidence base and we can offer something genuinely different and unique to social prescribing. This is an agenda that we shouldn’t hope to own and we can’t hope to own but we can help to contribute to its success. We can’t afford the help this opportunity pass, not for our profession, or more importantly for the people that we work with. This is something that occupational therapists can really contribute to make a success of, so please get in touch and let me know.
DS:
So, as Paul mentioned, he’d love to get your thoughts on social prescribing, especially if you’ve got any experience in this area or if you’re undertaking any research, so drop him a line please at paul.cooper@rcot.co.uk
DD:
Simone also felt that presents an opportunity for OTs to proactively get involved and promote the value of OT :
SC:
I think it's been a massive wakeup call for us as OTs to really get off our backs and go out and tell people what we do. But I think we also need to be having very important conversations now in its early phases about how to reclaim that and how to get into those GP practices and make job roles for ourselves in there
GPs are quite open to us being there and I think with the whole movement towards individual budgets and personal budgets that the doors have already been opened for us to go in and be much more involved in GP practices and consortions..
DS:
I spoke to Susanne about what she will be doing on a practical level to progress her work in this area
SS:
It's made me want to connect more with 0Ts. So within that session there was an OT behind me was talking about GP hubs and how GPs are really getting occupational therapist do and wanting to roll that out. So I think what I've taken away from it is I'm not the only one I think. Amanda Peacock was another OT who has spoken today about social prescribing and she was saying the same you kind of feel like you're the only ones. But actually there's lots of pockets of OTs that are doing it or trying to get involved with it. So I think what I've taken away is. Reach out a little bit more and find out more about what OTs are doing out there.
DD:
There was a lot of interest in new and emerging areas of practice. I joined Simone Coetzee for an occupational station about occupation as protest.
SC:
So I am Simone Coetzee and I am a lecturer at the University of Essex.
It was really nice to see that because I haven't seen anything like that on the program before and to be thinking particularly I have, I'm still thinking about the stuff that we looked at at the WFOT conference last year and how powerful that was and really thinking about how we can include a lot of that kind of radical thinking into both teaching occupational therapy and clinical practice.
So it was really nice to just sort of sit there and listen to this. Kind of talk discussion about protests in different ways but how we're being given permission to do it really. Not that we need permission but actually OTs are quite a passive lot generally. But as we have these real you know kind of passionate lives and creative lives and we should be doing more with that. Yeah.
I'm very passionate about environmental justice linking with occupational justice and that kind of, by promoting those three just the social justice occupational justice and environmental justice is really part of our job and we actually should be doing all three.
I mean that we're very good at occupational justice and that we can do that because that's the tools of our trade but we cannot have occupation or life without the kind of environmental aspect of it. And I and I really feel that I'd like to be looking much more at how occupational therapists can push in all the organizations that we work in to be challenging the kind of waste that there is in in in kind of big organizations and be thinking about building environmental thinking into all of our practice, into our teaching.
So that's one thing that I'd like to be thinking more about. And then also on much more of a person orientated level looking at, so I work with students, I don't really see sort of service users anymore but from working with students and kind of understanding the challenges that they have and the passions that they have and then trying to work collaboratively with them collaboratively with them because I think again that collective voice is much stronger than students saying one thing. And then being kind of a lone voice in the crowd and us thinking about how we can make protest constructive and transformative and peaceful but make it better and make it relevant.
DS:
So – while we’re talking about students and future practice– I spent some time chatting to one of our student delegates about how he is feeling about the future of the profession…
I'm Ben Choi from the University of Brighton and I’m almost finished, I've almost finished my master's in occupational therapy.
I think we're already setting quite a positive future. To be honest with you. I believe we're one of the few professions that aren't severely affected by the whole robotics and taking over professions sort of stuff. And so I think we're already in a fairly good position going forward. I think we need to be more assertive in MDT teams from my experiences on placement just because. Like I said from my experience I've seen that's not the case so much. I think naturally a lot of occupational therapists we kind of sit back a little bit and sometimes are happy for others to take the lead but I think maybe a bit more assertiveness and a bit more leadership and more of a push on that side of stuff. And I think would benefit us massively as a profession.
DD:
It’s interesting, that point about leadership keeps coming up. We actually did a whole podcast on it recently. It feels like occupational therapists are ready and wanting to lead which was something that Suzanne Rastrick encouraged in her opening plenary.
Suzanne Rastrick:
You have a vital role to play in the unfolding destiny of the world, dear occupational therapists. What will it be for you? I want to introduce you to my last AHP voice – Tom Whelton. Tom is a diagnostic radiographer from Lancashire whose lived experience includes being diagnosed with sudden death syndrome at the age of 20… and I want to leave you if I may with a particular thought of Tom’s, which to me epitomises leadership and how I want you to respond to what I’ve said this morning. The future is now, we are it. No one else. Just you. Don’t wait for anyone else to do it. So, dear occupational therapists, get going please.
DS:
Back to Suzanne Simpson here:
SS:
Picking up on what Suzanne talked about this morning and I'm a big believer in this now is around a thing for the profession it's now about leadership and it's about OTs standing up and shouting more. And selling ourselves – we’re not good at it
And I know I'm not gonna say I get in a room and I get whole imposter syndrome and I think what am I doing here. But actually it's about driving everything forward and taking people with you. Suzanne really hit the nail on the head. It's about nurturing others. And what I really love about being an OT and now being in a role as a band 7 is I want to. Hopefully infect other people in that drive. And that, come on, we’re OTs and we can do anything and I am. I probably have got rose tinted glasses and I probably do think pie in the sky ideas but I think unless I really aim for the ideal then what am I'm striving for? I think for the profession now is the time to lead. You know everybody's saying it. Everybody's talking our language so let's lead. Let's show people how it's done and take them with us and support them to do it as well.
DD:
So while we’re talking about leadership, I met up with one of RCOT’s Health and Work Champions to attend Genevieve Smyth’s session on this project… we caught up by phone after Conference to have a chat about this…
EF:
My name's Elizabeth Field, I'm an occupational therapist in Cornwall. I work with the stroke and neurology therapy service and in addition to my therapy role I've also taken on the volunteer role as a health and world champion.
The project if people aren't aware of it. It's led by Gen Smyth from the RCOT and it's all about good work for good health and supporting our colleagues in health care and also now in social care to be aware of the relationship between good work and good health and to be aware of the risks of someone being either in unhelpful unhealthy work or of struggling and maybe becoming out of work.
DD:
Elizabeth shared some of her thoughts on Gen’s session with me:
EF:
I was thrilled that it was so well supported. It was great to hear. I mean there was one person who spoke out who's working with young people with dementia specifically trying to help them back into work or to remain in their jobs. It was great to hear from that person.
I met Jen only last week in Cornwall and even just coming to that extra session in the conference I still once again learnt new things. I found out that you know we're now far more explicitly involving our colleagues in social care which when I was first involved with the project we were far more sort of healthcare focussed and now we're just embracing the whole community of people who can get on board with this project and support this agenda of good work for good health.
Yeah and and also just hearing about the opportunities for local leadership for occupational therapists to lead in this area in their local services or in their local organizations and the career development opportunities that are coming out of this this project and the way people are developing it locally. Well that was very uplifting as well. For the project but for occupational therapy.
DD:
Elizabeth explained how the Health and Work Champions role has given her a tangible way to lead within her trust
EF:
I know just speaking informally to people who who've been involved with the project it has raised their profile it has given a specific identity that that then has leverage. I think once you've got a profile and a name for and some visibility for leading in one area then people recognize the skills and want to hand you other pieces of work and say What can you do with this
DS:
So, it’s been a really packed couple of days, but we have seen some key themes coming out of our conversations, definitely social prescribing and an interest in new ways of working.
DD:
And , of course, leadership. Conference ended with some words from RCOT’s Chief Executive Julia Scott
JS:
I do wonder if it’s time for us to declare ‘I am an occupational therapist’ with a bit more confidence and assertion and assume that people will know something of what we do. A little confidence can go a long way and is it time that we all spent some time creating 5 or 6 ‘I am’ statements. Is it time we worked on us being more assertive about what we do? Dictionary.com defines an assertion as a positive statement or declaration without support or reason. I can live with that. I urge you to try it.
DS:
Thanks to everyone who took part in todays’ episode, especially to our interviewees Ben Choi, Simone Coetzee, Elizabeth Field and Susanne Simpson. If you have any thoughts on the topics we’ve discussed, or any ideas for what you’d like to hear in upcoming episodes, you can contact us on any of our social channels using the hashtag #RCOTpodcast
We’re taking a break from Conference next year to conduct a review. Remember to give your feedback at rcot.co.uk/feedback
Multiple voices:
‘I enjoyed Alice Hortops’ talk because she made me think about the importance of solitary activity and why that sometimes might be really helpful for people rather than encouraging them to socialise more’
‘For me, the best bit’s actually been meeting people, meeting colleagues that I know from online, or I know their work from research or articles. Just that networking and connection with other OTs has been the best bit of conference for me.’
END