Premium
Occupational therapists' perceptions of the role of community learning disability teams
Author(s) -
Lillywhite Alison,
Atwal Anita
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
british journal of learning disabilities
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.633
H-Index - 39
eISSN - 1468-3156
pISSN - 1354-4187
DOI - 10.1046/j.1468-3156.2003.00240.x
Subject(s) - teamwork , perception , occupational therapy , nursing , psychology , learning disability , scale (ratio) , quality (philosophy) , medicine , medical education , psychiatry , political science , philosophy , physics , epistemology , quantum mechanics , neuroscience , law
Summary Multiprofessional working is a central aspect of current health and social care policy. A key aspect of teamwork is role perception. This article presents the findings of a small‐scale study of occupational therapists' perceptions of their core roles in specialist learning disability teams. It presents the views of community occupational therapists regarding the roles of other team members. The findings of this study suggest that occupational therapists emphasize their and other health and social care professionals' uniqueness through role delineation. There was little evidence of integration of roles and/or joint working. Recommendations are made to enhance multiprofessional working that should ensure that professionals respond more effectively by providing person‐centred quality services.