Continuing Professional development of occupational therapists in school-based practice: survey of content and learning needs.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to identify the continuing professional education practices and needs of occupational therapists currently working in Minnesota schools. Descriptive research using a survey was used to discover knowledge areas important to school-based practice and the preferred methods of delivery of continuous professional learning both in and outside of the school or district setting. After rating 19 identified knowledge areas for their importance to current practice, OTs rated their exposure to the areas in their pre-service coursework and fieldwork. Although the vast majority of school-based OTs reported exposure to pediatric related coursework, more than half reported no coursework in the school-based practice areas, indicating a lack of preparation by their pre-service program for practice in schools. As generalist preparation is the goal of pre-preparation programs, an expectation of vastly improved school-based preparation appears improbable. Preferences for delivery of CPE, reported by the responding OTs, included regularly scheduled professional conversations with OTs in the same school or district and formal workshops of 1-3 days in any location. Barriers included cost of continuing education courses and distance to quality professional education for school-based OTs. Time and structure for professional conversations within a school or district also was viewed as supportive of school-based OTs in their professional learning. School-based practice is one of the largest practice areas for occupational therapists. Lack of pre-service preparation and a structure for obtaining the knowledge and skills needed for practice in schools suggests practice and policy changes to facilitate improved preparation. Uniform standards for practice in schools, increased support in practice (caseload and workload), access to relevant continuing professional education delivered by methods specifically designed for school-based OTs are implications of this study. Further research is recommended to confirm knowledge and skill areas for a larger group of school-based OTs, to update changing practice parameters, and to measure the impact of continuing education. Keywords: Occupational therapists in school-based practice, pre-service preparation for occupational therapists, professional development practices for occupational therapists, continuing professional development, school-based occupational therapy.