Tutorial Five

Tutorial Five: Video Production Sessions

Introduce a chosen topic of interest drawn from your fieldwork experience or an OT practice area

A topic of interest I have come across on my fieldwork experiences is a condition called Conversion Disorder.

“Conversion disorder is a condition in which a person has blindness, paralysis, or other nervous system (neurologic) symptoms that cannot be explained by medical evaluation” (PubMed Health, 2010). Put simply, a person with conversion disorder experiences physical symptoms with no physiological or neurological reason.
Retrieved 1 May 2012 from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001950/


Below are five videos explaining, demonstrating and providing a personal experience of conversion disorder:

Neurologist
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbQK8ucIcAw
Jennifer McVige is a paediatric neurologist describes conversion disorder as psychological symptoms manifesting themselves in a physiological form.

Descriptive slide
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9yJiK-9rs8g
A slideshow introducing what conversion disorder is, including symptoms and risk factors.

Psych conversion disorder case
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bt_Js1jHuLQ&feature=related
Describing the stressor of conversion disorder, also known as somatoform disorder.

Dr James Amos (has blog)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8J5BedXLOu0
Psychiatrist discussing somatoform disorders (conversion disorder). Below is a link to this Doctor’s blog. http://jajsamos.wordpress.com/

Danielle’s journey with conversion disorder
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xhypWbI0bk
Journey of a girl with conversion disorder and her personal experience.

Tutorial Four

Tutorial Four: Video Production Sessions

This week I was part of a small group who planned and produced a short 1 minute length film. The film was based on the concept occupational deprivation.

 Occupational Deprivation: A term credited to Wilcock and Whiteford (2000) referring to a state of prolonged preclusion from engagement in occupations of necessity or meaning due to factors outside the control of an individual, such as through geographic isolation, incarceration, or disability.

Planning (storyboarding and scripting) aided the production of our group’s film by providing structure and sequences which assisted us to keep within the 1 minute time frame.

Thank you to the participants Dave, Gareth, Brad and Penelope (Pip) for all their contributions to make this film happen.

Christiansen, C. H., & Townsend, E. A. (2010). Introduction to occupation: The art and science of               living (2nd ed.). New Jersey: Pearson.

Tutorial Three

The creation of my Blog. Ta-da!

Tutorial Two

Participation in occupation tut 2

View more PowerPoint from Pippywhip

Tutorial Two: Occupational Engagement, Doing, Being, Becoming and Belonging

My chosen occupation is play. My first fieldwork placement was in an urban pediatric rehabilitation centre and the primary occupation for children is play. I observed children play from a variety of cultures, from various parts of the country and a range of different age groups. I was involved in assessing children’s play skills and assisted in development of these skills, problem solving skills and participation in every day occupations and a variety of forms of play according to the age group of the children.

To Do: The concept of doing includes purposeful, goal-orientated activities (Hammell, 1998).

To Be: Being has been defined as time taken to reflect, be introspective or meditative, (re) discover the self, savour the moment, and appreciate nature, art or music in a contemplative manner and to enjoy being with special people (Hammell, 1998). It involves the realms of meaning and value (Rowles, 1991).

To Become:  Becoming describes the idea that people can envision future selves and possible lives, explore new opportunities and harbour ideas about who or what they wish to become over the course of their biographies and how their lives might be experienced as worthwhile (Hammell, 1988; 2003).

To Belong: The term belonging describes the necessary contribution of social interaction, mutual support and friendship, and the sense of being included, to occupational performance and life satisfaction (Rebeiro et al, 2001).

Examples of ethical considerations in relation to chosen images

• Use of own personal photographs. 
• Informed consent – gained informed consent to use photographs of my niece and nephew participating in Doing, Being, Becoming, and Belonging activities. I ensured there were no direct face photos for their privacy.
• Authenticity of online sources – providing URL and date for images retrieved from online sources. E.g. Google.

Hammell, K. W. (2004). Dimensions of meaning in the occupations of daily life. Canadian Journal of Occupational Therapy , 296-305.

Hammell, K. W. (1998). From the neck up: Quality in life following high spinal cord injury. Vancouver, BC: The University of British Columbia, Unpublished doctoral dissertation.

Hammell, K. W. (2003). Intrinsicality: Reflections on meanings and mandates. In M.A. McColl (Ed.), Spirituality and occupational therapy (pp.67-82). Ottawa, ON: CAOT Publications ACE.

Rebeiro, K. L., Day, D., Semeniuk, B., O'Brien, M., & Wilson, B. (2001). Northern initiative for social action: An occupation-based mental health program. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 55, 493-500.

Rowles, G.D. (1991). Beyond performance: Being in place as a component of occupational therapy. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 25, 265-271.

Tutorial One

Tutorial One: Information Technology and Ethical Issues
The focus of this posting relates to ethical issues relative to Information Technology.
Information Technology (IT) has been defined in The Penguin English Dictionary (2004) as the use of computers, telecommunications, etc, in electronic processing, storing, retrieving, and sending information.
This means that people worldwide with access to IT can send, receive, store, and share information such as photos, videos and communicate in a variety of ways including e-mails, Skype, and online chat forums, social networking sites and blogs.

Consider the definition of IT you have provided. How is this form of technology prevalent in our society? How common place is it?
Information Technology is so widely used today that almost everyone has access to it in one form or another. IT allows people to share, connect and communicate in such a way that has not previously been possible or accessible for many people. Gone are the days when family photos are distributed via post – now everything digital and instant.

What IT devices or system do you feel comfortable and competent using?
I am comfortable using IT in the form of computers, laptops, digital cameras, cell phones, iPod’s, iPhones, the internet, social networking sites and e-mail. I began using computers in primary school as a method of word processing before it was common for families to own their own computers. I learnt to type on a typewriter at home.
Issues that may limit my use of IT include my own personal knowledge about a particular type of device, my experience with it, or personal injury or illness preventing me from using IT.
Opportunities to expand my use of IT include education and study for example setting up a blog for the first time.
Examples where I use OT to engage in purposeful occupations include using my iPod for a shopping list, to do internet banking, for work and recreation, making notes, recording, as an alarm, a timer, and calculator and many more. I also use computers, laptop and printers as part of my course, and blogs too!

Thinking about your own fieldwork experiences and referring to the tutorial readings and language of occupation answer the following questions.
I have seen Information Technology being used in Occupational Therapy (OT) practice on fieldwork placement by using Nintendo Wii during rehabilitation, computers to write up clinic notes, and Playstation Portable (PSP) during casting and orthotics, and computerized exercise equipment.
Issues that exist around the use of IT within OT settings surround clinical reasoning (Verdonck & Ryan, 2008). Occupational Therapists are encouraged to engage in IT because the use of IT is becoming everyday meaningful occupations for occupational therapy clients (Verdonck & Ryan, 2008).
I believe that an understanding and use of IT will assist OT’s in practice because it will enable us to connect with our clients on their level, and encourage the use of meaningful occupations as the use of IT is involved in the everyday lives of most people in one form or another within New Zealand. Even if it is just using a cell phone or e-mail.

What ethical implications arise from capturing, sharing and transferring of IT information via IT devices or systems?
Obviously there are ethical implications surrounding the privacy of IT users with regard to capturing, sharing and transferring information, and also cyber bullying. Luckily most IT devices and systems have privacy settings which users can adjust to suit them to prevent unwanted attention and privacy where required.

Allen, R. (consultant editor). (2004). The penguin english dictionary. London: Penguin Books.
Verdonck, M. C., & Ryan, S. (2008). Mainstream technology as an occupational therapy tool: Technophobe or technogeek. British Journal of Occupational Therapy , 253-256.

Introduction To My Blog

Hello!!
This is my very first blog! How exciting :)