All of the views and opinions expressed here are my own.
Textbook update… Thank you for your contributions and support! We’re on the home stretch!
I’m writing a textbook at the moment about the role of OTs in women’s health, perinatal stages, and matrescence! I am intending for it to be contemporary and progressive, and have had the privilege of OTs and academics offering contributions to this. This book is about connecting and collaborating with OTs and researchers leading the way. We’ll be sharing a collection of case studies and evidence-based practice examples which help translate research to practice (and vise versa!), and the book will be shaped by peer-review from key stakeholders. I know this practice space is moving quickly, so I’m constantly working to keep up to speed and represent global practices. Everything’s on track and we’ve got a view for publishing in early 2025.
On a personal note – thank you to everyone for the messages of support along the way – it’s actually a big deal and gives me a much needed boost of energy and drive. Thank you. It would certainly be a long and lonely road with you!
Phases of development … HOW WE’RE TRACKING SO FAR:
- Case studies and practice examples | Thank you to the OTs and their clients! We have had just over 50 case studies submitted for the textbook from Australia, Brazil, Canada, New Zealand, the UK, and USA. Amazing! Story-telling is a beautiful language we have as humans for passing on knowledge and wisdom, and the richness that comes from sharing these practice-based perspectives is invaluable. Thank you to you all, so much!
- Chapter contributors | We have some amazing contributors from around the world writing for this book, offering different perspective and insights into OT practices with women during perinatal stages and matrescence. Thank you to everyone who has shared their work and research! It’s collectively well beyond my greatest hopes, and so much more than I could possible offer on my own.
- Thank you to everyone for investing in this project and sharing your pioneering work, personal efforts, and professional trust. I am so grateful and appreciative, and I hope this book is as useful and supportive to our profession as you all have hoped. We’re a passionate crew, aren’t we?!
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN 2024?
- January to June 2024 | Compiling and writing chapters, building OT case studies/practice perspectives throughout the textbook, and sending in chapters to the publisher for peer-review (thank you to Taylor & Francis for taking a chance on this book!).
- February to December 2024 | Manuscript submission, peer-review, editing, and preparing for publication.
- January/February 2025 | Publication! We hope 🙂
All contributors and contributions will be acknowledged in the book, and also on this website in the near future. Thank you!
My PhD is completed and the thesis is published!
Slootjes, H. (2022). The Role of Occupational Therapists in Perinatal Health [Doctoral thesis, La Trobe University]. Open Access at La Trobe (OPAL). https://doi.org/10.26181/19836172.v1. Click here to access via OPAL.
Research findings are available, and more are coming…
Thank you to all of the participants – and the many others along the way – who have generously offered and shared their time, experiences, thoughts, reflections, expertise and network connections to help me capture a snapshot of how occupational therapists are working in perinatal maternal health around the world.
Please check the Presentation schedule page for details about upcoming presentations discussing this research.
Research & evidence-based practice for OTs in perinatal health, motherhood, and matrescence 