Occupational Therapists’ Experiences of working in Irish Schools

Abstract: Purpose. The purpose of the study was to describe Occupational Therapists’ experiences of working in Irish schools.  Method. Convenience sampling was used to recruit the eight participants in the study. A semi-structured interview was used to gain data about their experiences. The data was analysed through latent and manifest content analysis inspired by Olsson and Sörensen (2011) and meaning units were identified, condensed and labelled with codes. Result. The analysis resulted in three categories: “Resources impact the delivery of service” which shows how resources, within and outside of the participants control, impact the delivery of service and the challenges that might lead to. “Importance of communication and understanding” describes the dynamic between the participants’, school-staff and parents. ”Comparing school-based and clinic-based occupational therapy” where the participants share their experiences and opinions of school-based and clinic-based Occupational Therapy.  Conclusion. Resources and communication have a beneficial effect on Occupational Therapy in schools. Many factors add to the complexity of delivering the service. A preference of school-based Occupational Therapy is seen, however, Occupational Therapy today is generally more clinic-based. More research on the topic is needed.