History of the Occupational Therapy Department

The Department of Occupational Therapy was the first occupational therapy training programme in South Africa.  The Department was established by Dr. Humphrey Raikes and Prof. Raymond Dart and the first students were admitted in 1943. Miss M Crousaz and Miss McArthur were recruited in England to be the first lecturers. They had been tasked to bring educational material, textbooks and equipment to start the department but this was lost when their ship was torpedoed en route to the Cape.  These two tenacious occupational therapists made their way to Johannesburg by road from Sierra Leone where they came ashore after the ship being torpedoed.  Their tenacity has been the hallmark of Wits Occupational Therapy since.

From 1943 to 1970 a three and half year diploma course was offered. The four year BSc (Occupational Therapy) course was introduced in 1970. Facilities for converting the diploma to a degree existed from 1970-1982, and 28 therapists completed this conversion.

In 1970, the department introduced the first South African Masters degree in Occupational Therapy (by dissertation), as well as a PhD. Pam McLaren, a member of staff at the time, was the first recipient of the Masters degree in 1979 and Prof Marj Concha, who was the head of department, was the first recipient of the first PhD.

In 1979 a two year part time advanced diploma was introduced, with two options available: Neurosciences and Treatment of Perceptual Problems. An advanced diploma in the field of Psychiatry was introduced in 2001. In keeping with the National Qualification Framework these courses were renamed Postgraduate Diplomas in 2007.

Since 1986 the department has also offered an MSc OT degree by coursework and research report for all courses presented as Post Graduate diplomas. A Masters degree in Public Health by coursework and research report in the field of Rehabilitation has been offered since 1999. This course is currently being reviewed to accommodate advances in the Public health approach within occupational therapy. The postgraduate coursework programmes were initially offered as afternoon lectures throughout the academic year but in 2001 the courses were modularised and courses were taught in blocks spread throughout the year to allow greater access.

In 1991 the department established the Community Rehabilitation Research and Education Programme (CORRE). One of the activities of this programme was the two year diploma multidisciplinary education programme for Community Rehabilitation Workers (CRW s) who were registered with the HPCSA as Occupational Therapy Assistants (Community). This course was offered at Tintswalo Hospital in Limpopo Province were the department together with its partners in the Physiotherapy and Speech Therapy departments developed a community based rehabilitation service. This education programme encouraged interaction and common learning experiences with occupational therapy students and others.

In 2000 the Department introduced an Occupational Therapy Assistant Training Programme. This one-year certificate course trained occupational therapy assistants (OTAs) and was based in the Occupational Therapy Department in Johannesburg.

It was planned that this would be a bridging process with the first year of the training for Occupational Therapy Assistants, the second year being the diploma qualification as Occupational Therapy Assistant (Community) offered at Tintswalo Hospital by CORRE. Both programmes were discontinued in 2002 as the University was not allowed to offer a pre-graduate course by the Department of Education.

Since 1942 the department has had eleven Department Heads:

• Miss M. Crousaz (1943-1946),
• Miss McArthur (1946-1955),
• Miss S. Cynkin (1955-1963),
• Miss T. Hinton-Knowles (1963-1967),
• Mrs C. Hugo (1968-1969),
• Mrs A. Adams (1968-1969),
• Mr K. Tigges (1969-1972),
• Prof. M. Concha (1972-2001)
• Prof. P. De Witt (2002-2017)
• Dr F. Adams (2017 - 2021)
• Ms M. van Niekerk (2021-present)

Current education programmes

In 1994 the department developed a new curriculum to accommodate the new thinking about health care and health care delivery introduced by the democratically elected government. A hybrid problem-based teaching and learning strategy was introduced at this time. This innovative curriculum was the result of intensive discussion and collaboration with the university colleagues, clinicians, people with disabilities, students and department staff. The course has two major courses:

Occupational Science which was a unique and innovative course to develop student’s understanding of the importance of human occupation and its relationship to health and wellness. The course also examines all types of human occupation and the factors which influence it. This provides foundation knowledge for the occupational therapy course and accommodated the new direction within the profession of occupation-based practice.  Since Wits introduced occupational science as a foundational subject, the field has undergone significant changes internationally.

Occupational Therapy which includes the prevention of occupational dysfunction, the promotion of Activities Health and the assessment and treatment of all occupational dysfunction in people of all ages, with conditions consistent with the health burden of Southern Africa for all levels of service delivery.

The Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy courses are combined in the first two years and offered as separate courses in the third and fourth years to accommodate teaching, learning and clinical work related to the different field of practice and practice management and research.

Although the structure of the course has remained unchanged the course is critiqued annually at the department’s annual curriculum Bosberaad to ensure the fit and the flow of the learning material and learning process within the curriculum. Curriculum content adjusted in response to feedback and critique from the OT profession, clinicians on our teaching platform, the student body, policy changes and changes in health delivery and developments and new knowledge within the occupational therapy profession.

The undergraduate curriculum aims to educate generalist work entry-level therapists with excellent context appropriate knowledge and skill that will allow graduates to meet the changing needs of the South African population.

The postgraduate curricula aim to education postgraduate occupational therapists so that they have more specialised and field-specific knowledge and skills consistent with latest advancement and knowledge within the profession. Also to develop excellence in research so to develop new occupational therapy knowledge and treatment techniques and to provide the evidence for best practice in the Southern African context.

The Wits occupational therapy education programmes were last accredited in 2019 by the Professional Board for Occupational Therapy, Medical Orthotics and Prosthetics and Art Therapist of the HPCSA and licensed for the next five years until 2024. Through an agreement between the Professional Board and The Occupational Therapy Association of South Africa (OTASA), the Department is also a World Federation of Occupational Therapy (WFOT) approved School for Occupational Therapy and our entry-level programme is also WFOT accredited.

Blended learning

In 2009 the Department embarked on introducing a blended learning approach alongside PBL in its curriculum.  It started using Moodle as a learning management platform in 2010.  A blended learning approach combines electronic, technology assisted learning activities with face-to-face learning.  This includes asynchronous e-lessons, minecraft activities and synchronous small- and large-group discussions.  Blended learning as a learning and teaching approach is well-supported in the higher education literature, and has ensured a smooth transition for the Department and its students during the pandemic as well as returning to campus in 2022.

Departmental values and objectives

The department through all its activities embraces the values and objectives of the university in the education of its students, its pursuit of truth and excellence and its development of appropriate occupational therapy knowledge, strategies and interventions for all occupationally dysfunctional South Africans. It strives to observe the principles laid down in the Constitution and all Health and Education related Acts and policies.

The Department has the following objectives:

• To acquire, advance and impart knowledge about the practice of the profession of occupational therapy locally, nationally and internationally.
• To maintain and enhance the highest standard of teaching, learning, research and service, but at the same time to provide academic support and mentoring to all students so that they have the opportunity to achieve in and complete the course irrespective of their educational background.
• To develop, evaluate and research the appropriateness of curricula for the different level of occupational therapists in consultation with all stakeholders so as to provide high calibre professionals who will be able to meet the demands of service development, service delivery, service management and service evaluation for people with all types of disabilities in all parts of our country, especially those in marginalised groups.
• To undertake fundamental research to advance knowledge concerning the practice of the profession, and to conduct applied research so as to contribute to the rehabilitation needs of the peoples of Southern Africa within both rural and urban settings and in developed and underdeveloped communities.
• To direct the practice of the profession towards relevance within the South African context.
• To encourage growth and development of the profession.