Anita Hamilton
Department of Occupational Therapy
University of Alberta
Contact Information:
Phone: (780) 492 8416
Fax: (780) 492 4628
E-mail: anita.hamilton@ualberta.ca
Education:
University of Queensland Master of Occupational Therapy (Cont Prac) 2003
Research & Teaching interests:
· Effective use of eLearning technologies in higher education
· Applications of Web 2.0 technologies in occupational therapy practice
· Assistive technology and computer technology in occupational therapy
· Occupational role change and adjustment; “enabling transitions”
· Barriers to obtaining paid work for people with a disability
· Application of occupational therapy theory in practice
· Therapeutic use of self
Research in progress:
· Re-connecting: Becoming a Blogger after an Acquired Brain Injury (PI)
· Students’ perceptions of collaborating to create a Wiki, and the relationship between approach to task and learning style. (PI)
· Exploring Therapeutic Use of Self Through Shared Stories (Co-researcher)
Grants:
· Students’ perceptions of collaborating to create a Wiki, and the relationship between approach to task and learning style. (2008 – 2009). Funded by Teaching and Learning Enhancement Fund at the
My underlying frame of reference:
The Doing, Being, Belonging and Becoming model (Wilcock, 2006) informs how I understand the role of occupational therapists to facilitate health and well-being for people or communities in transition.
Through doing we satisfy pre-requites of health and if we select according to what is meaningful we enhance potential; being means finding meaning and purpose through what one does and thus having a sense of belonging to communities, groups and our environment. Becoming means moving closer to realizing one’s potential through occupation.
Occupational therapists usually work in settings where people come to get help to manage change or disruption. This is usually in the areas of physical or mental health. By enabling people to do and be, they are more likely to realize their potential and have a sense of belonging in the groups or places that are important to them, and know that they belong.
Occupational disruption through injury or illness is usually what people think about, but other types of disruption through typical life events such as losing a job, becoming a parent or becoming a student are all transitions that can lead to imbalance and ill-health. In my practice as an OT educator I see a link between doing, being, belonging and becoming in the transition our students take while becoming an occupational therapist. By enabling people to understand the change process and empowering them to take steps towards their own in the future, occupational therapists and we as educators fulfill the vision for health and well-being for all, through occupation.
Clinical or policy implications of research:
Increased use of Web2.0 technology in teaching and research is enabling occupational therapists to have better access to technology for practice. This is seen in tele-rehabilitation, online professional development and the emergence of online networking between health professionals. Occupational therapists have the capacity to link people and enable change through technology.
Inspiration/Vision Statement:
Health depends on validation of “the uniqueness of each person and the need to respond to each individual's spiritual quest for meaning, purpose and belonging” (WHO: Health for All in the Twenty-first Century, 1998).
Recent publications:
Hamilton, A. (in press). Diffusion of innovation: Developing an online community resource using a wiki.OTNow.
Hamilton, A. & De Jonge. Adopting the father role: An ethnographic study of the impact of parenting on occupational identity and role functions. Submitted for publication.
Schmidt, R. & Hamilton, A. (2007). Doing, being, becoming and belonging as a regional group. Occupational Therapist.