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The Use Of Group Intervention By Occupational Therapists Essay

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The use of group intervention by occupational therapists under a cognitive behavioural framework.

Haggedorn (2005) defines group work as any activity that involves three or more individuals. The use of therapeutic groups has been a popular intervention technique in Occupational Therapy practice since the 1920’s (Duncan, 2008). Over time and with the influence of varying health care requirements, the nature of group intervention has evolved from activity-focused programmes to groups that implement evidence based practice (Duncan, 2008). The types of groups that are run by Occupational Therapists are many and varied (Bullock & Bannigan, 2011). This is because Occupational Therapists have recognized the numerous therapeutic benefits of group work (Cole, 2012). The purpose is for group members to not only gain from the therapist, but also from interactions with other group members (Creek, 2008). This relates to occupational therapy as group work enables clients to engage in social interactions, develop skills and participate in meaningful occupations; all which are core domains of occupational therapy practice (Bullock & Bannigan, 2011).

In current practice, Occupational Therapists use group interventions with a broad range of client groups and in multiple different settings. This variety has been encapsulated by Mosey (1986) in her Classification of Activity Groups which categories groups into six different types and subtypes (Creek, 2008). The type of group chosen by the

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