ACT new graduate occupational therapist becomes 21,000th registrant as profession continues to grow

31 Jul 2018

The number of registered occupational therapists in Australia has passed 21,000, signalling that interest in the profession does not appear to be slowing.

The Occupational Therapy Board of Australia (the Board) congratulated Shannon Kara of Canberra on 'a special 21st' - becoming its 21,000th registrant - following the Board’s approval of her registration earlier this month.

Ms Kara recently completed the Master of Occupational Therapy program at the University of Canberra. A ‘born-and-bred Canberran’, Ms Kara undertook training after more than 10 years working in web design and social media.

‘I was going through my own personal experience with an occupational therapist and realised I had been involved in OT most of my working life and as a parent,’ she said. ‘Occupational therapy is about making adaptations to the person or environment with the aim of achieving goals that are centred around the client.’

During her study Ms Kara discovered a passion for mental health care during a clinical placement and travelled to the City of Legazpi in the Philippines to develop the framework for a local wellness program. With plans to practise close to her ACT roots, she has already attracted the attention of employers and is looking forward to starting work as a mental health clinician soon.

‘I’m looking forward to the next chapter and helping people in the community to recover from mental illness,’ she said.

Since the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme (the National Scheme) began in 2010 the occupational therapy profession has grown year-on-year. Since 2012/13, when there were 15,101 registered occupational therapists in Australia, the profession has now grown to 21,053 as of 16 July 2018, an increase of 39%. The profession today is made up of 9% male practitioners and 91% female practitioners. The principal place of practice for the majority of the profession is in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland and the majority of the profession is aged between 25-44.

When reflecting on how far the profession has come, Board Chair Julie Brayshaw said she was pleased with how seriously registered occupational therapists take their legal obligations under the National Law.

‘I would like to congratulate Shannon for being our 21,000th registrant. She joins her peers who make a significant contribution to the delivery of safe and quality care throughout Australia’s health system. This is a wonderful milestone for the profession. Occupational therapists are a pivotal part of health services being delivered to healthcare consumers as they help clients become as independent as they can be in their daily lives,’ Ms Brayshaw said.

Once registered with their relevant National Board, health practitioners are able practise anywhere in Australia. Each year they have to meet their National Board’s standards, codes and guidelines.

‘Occupational therapists have engaged really well with their responsibilities under the National Scheme. As with everything there is still more we can do to ensure that we are practising competently. The new Australian occupational therapy competency standards, launched in February this year, outline the professional behaviours all occupational therapists should demonstrate to practise safely and ethically. It is important that practitioners, employers, education providers and consumers engage with the standards. They determine the expected behaviours for a registered occupational therapist.’

For more information about the new competency standards, including resources that can be used within practice settings please visit www.occupationaltherapyboard.gov.au/competencies.

Members of the public can check the registration status of Australia’s registered health workforce using the national online Register of practitioners, with details of registered practitioners updated several times each day across Australia. The national register is a great resource to help keep the public safe.

For more information

• Access our background data – 21,000 registered health practitioners
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