Guides to Good Practice

Guide to Good Practice for Working with Children (May 2016)

• About the Guide to Good Practice for Working with Children
• Development
• Feedback from members
• Acknowledgements

About the Guide to Good Practice for Working with Children

The Occupational Therapy Guide to Good Practice for Working with Children provides practice guidelines for occupational therapists who work with children (aged 0-18 years) and their families/caregivers. This can be used as a reference for occupational therapists, consumers, and organisations. It outlines expectations for good practice.

The Guide incorporates information from a range of sources: experienced occupational therapists practicing in the field, researchers, academics, current evidence, and governing bodies relevant to occupational therapy practice and children.

The information in this Guide was developed to be used by occupational therapists who work with children and their families/caregivers to articulate what is expected of occupational therapists who work with these individuals. Particular acknowledgement is made of the 2007 UK Guide to Good Practice for Paediatric Physiotherapists (Association of Paediatric Chartered Physiotherapists), which informed the framework for this document.

The Guide is intended to complement other key documents including the AHPRA Code of Conduct, the Occupational Therapy Australia Code of Ethics (2001), and the Occupational Therapy Australia Competency Standards for Entry-Level Practitioners (2010). A range of other regulatory and legislative documents may apply depending on jurisdiction, service type, and employment structure.

Development

The need for a good practice guide was identified by Occupational Therapy Australia’s Paediatric Taskforce, which was established in July 2014 to advise the National Professional Practice and Standards Portfolio and the Board of Occupational Therapy Australia on issues relevant to paediatric practice. The Guide was developed by the National Paediatric Steering Group of Occupational Therapy Australia with input from the National Paediatric Reference Group and a range of other key stakeholders including the Board of Occupational Therapy Australia.

Feedback from members

Many good practice principles and practices are similar across practice areas, and Occupational Therapy Australia welcomes member feedback as to the usefulness of the Guide, and whether other practice areas would benefit from a similar document. The Guide is due for review 12 months after its original publication (in May 2017) and feedback is already being collated for future editions.

Acknowledgements

Occupational Therapy Australia gratefully acknowledges the below members, without whose input the Guide to Good Practice for Working with Children would not have been possible:

Paediatric Steering Group

• Dr Natasha Layton - CHAIR | Occupational Therapy Australia
• Dr Fiona Jones - CO-CHAIR | Private practice (NSW)
• Dr Annette Joosten - Curtin University
• Nicole Brown - James Cook University
• Dr Elspeth Froude - Australian Catholic University
• Celeste Riach - Private practice (NSW)
• Lisa Vale - RCH (now private practice)
• Aneesa Kathrada - School sector (QLD)
• Caroline Mills - Autism Spectrum Australia
• Liz Springfield - University of Queensland
• Rachelle Coe - University of Western Sydney

Paediatric Reference Group

• Dr Natasha Layton - CHAIR | Occupational Therapy Australia
• Dr Fiona Jones - CO-CHAIR | Private practice (NSW)
• Elizabeth Edgar - Private practice
• Tara Whiteford - Autism QLD/ECIS
• Erin Kelly - Private practice
• Deb Hopper - Private practice
• Emma King - Private practice NSW
• Nikki Chegwyn - School sector NSW
• Cate Hilly - USC
• Jacky Peile - Private practice NSW

For further information regarding Occupational Therapy Guides to Good Practice, please contact OTA.