October: National Occupational Therapy Month

October has been recognized in Canada as Occupational Therapy month since the early 1980s. Similar weeks and months have been designated in countries around the world, including the U.S., Britain and Australia and New Zealand, although all are held at different times. The month is a time for occupational therapists to focus their efforts in building public awareness of occupational therapy and what the profession offers. Therapists are also encouraged to come together to publically celebrate their own profession, to build connections among therapists, and to renew their own commitment to their field of practice. OT Month can serve as a time to focus on recruitment of students into occupational therapy programs, and to alert policy makers as to the unique contributions of occupational therapy in selected areas of health care service provision. Occupational therapy is generally a poorly understood profession, due to the wide range of services provided and populations served. The overarching goal of the profession is to enable individuals to succeed in the “occupations”, or personally significant activities and roles, they choose to participate in.

Dr. Rosemary Lysaght - OT Faculty Member, Queen’s University