Charles Sturt University (CSU) celebrates 20 years of educating occupational therapists this week at a seminar following the annual conference for students graduating from its Bachelor of  Occupational Therapy.

To help celebrate and in line with the seminar theme of diversity and equity, participants will learn from Associate Professor Lynne Adamson, the first coordinator of CSU's occupational therapy course and currently Director of Research with the National Disability Insurance Agency which will administer the Federal government's new National Disability Insurance Scheme.

Occupational therapy (OT) lecturer and conference-seminar coordinator Dr Sally Denshire believes everyone deserves access to life opportunities so they can participate in full.

"Occupational therapists are professionals who help people of all abilities to set and reach goals and to engage in meaningfully individually and with others," said Dr Denshire, who is with CSU's School of Community Health in Albury-Wodonga.

"To make access to health care services fairer, there needs to be a more collaborative relationship between the people who use and provide the services. 

"As part of our twentieth anniversary, we are addressing thorny questions around diversity and equity in occupational therapy, which will also be addressed by Professor Adamson in light of her new national role."

Commencing her career as an occupational therapist at the Austin Hospital in Melbourne, Professor Adamson has practiced in acute medical services, spinal rehabilitation and mental health services and managed health services before starting at CSU in 1993 to develop the first OT program for rural Australia. Since leaving CSU in 1999, Professor Adamson worked with the University of Sydney and Deakin University. 

"I am acutely aware of the changes that will need to happen in educating occupational therapists as the new federal scheme evolves. I am impressed by the continued development of the CSU course, which will need to be connected to the new world of the NDIS," Professor Adamson said.

Fellow speaker Ms Chontel Gibson, an Indigenous Academic Fellow at CSU, is particularly aware of the opportunities and challenges facing occupational therapists in working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

"The occupational therapy profession is committed to social justice and equity. The only way that we can transform this commitment into action is through collaboration with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples that reflects basic human rights. This action must have benefits, value and outcomes for communities and the profession," Ms Gibson said.

"To this end, I challenge the profession to reach these targets in the next 10 years:

• parity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students enrolled in occupational therapy degrees;
• a new curriculum aligned with the forthcoming National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Framework;
• new and revised professional competency standards;
• more evidence of practice and research with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples; and,
• professional structures with appropriate representation and transparency.

"I believe we can easily achieve this."

The graduating students will present papers before these speakers at the final year student conference 'Unpacking occupational therapy: Exploring our experiences', starting Thursday 30 October. Among the topics reflecting the seminar theme of diversity and equity are:

• "Occupational Identity: The challenges of occupational therapy in addressing the health of Australian refugees and asylum seekers", by Mr Jaydam Tierney. Mr Tierney will explore the role of occupational therapists working with Australians that have settled in Australia as refugees or asylum seekers.

• "When two become one: How an occupational therapist can facilitate in the adjustment of dealing with the loss of a spouse," by Ms Sophie McRae, who willexplore the impact of grief and loss and highlight the importance of acknowledging this life process.

• "'The Amazing Race': Older adults with vision impairment and the importance of leisure occupations", by Mr Matt Tolsher, who will explore how organisations such as Vision Australia can assist older Australians with vision impairments.