Smith, Samantha, Lowrie, Daniel, and Dawes, Nathan (2024) Exploring the role of palliative care occupational therapists in supporting compassionate communities in end‐of‐life care. Australian Occupational Therapy Journal, 71 (4). pp. 540-551.

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Abstract

Introduction: The compassionate communities' movement is a public health approach to end-of-life care that emphasises the integral role of communities in supporting and caring for dying persons and their informal carers. Although occupational therapists have well-established roles in palliative care teams, little is known about their potential in assisting in the formation and maintenance of compassionate communities.

Method: Data were gathered via semi-structured interviews with nine Australian occupational therapists with experience in specialist palliative care. Interview questions were based around the British Columbia Compassionate Community Ideal framework. Key themes were derived through qualitative descriptive analysis, blending deductive, and inductive reasoning.

Findings: Interviewees indicated that occupational therapists have a role in supporting compassionate communities that centres on the facilitation of networks and connections between palliative care professionals and in the promotion of informal care networks. The importance of education and awareness raising were also discussed as valuable to the development of community capacity. It was also suggested that occupational therapists have important skills to support dying persons and their caregivers to remain engaged and safe in their homes and communities, in a meaningful and sustainable way. However, many interviewees maintained a profession-centric view on control within compassionate communities, as opposed to approaches that are community led.

Conclusion: Findings offer early insights into the promise and potential of occupational therapists in supporting the compassionate communities' movement. However, education regarding the ethos of the compassionate communities' movement so as to facilitate a shift away from professionally oriented modes of practice may be needed to maximise success.

Item ID:	85760
Item Type:	Article (Research - C1)
ISSN:	1440-1630
Copyright Information:	This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2024 The Authors. Australian Occupational Therapy Journal published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Occupational Therapy Australia.
Date Deposited:	10 Jun 2025 01:22
FoR Codes:	42 HEALTH SCIENCES > 4201 Allied health and rehabilitation science > 420104 Occupational therapy @ 100%
SEO Codes:	20 HEALTH > 2003 Provision of health and support services > 200301 Allied health therapies (excl. mental health services) @ 50% 20 HEALTH > 2003 Provision of health and support services > 200309 Palliative care @ 50%
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