Process over person?: occupational therapy students' fieldwork experiences of people in psychiatric settings

This paper explores influences of psychiatric service system processes on occupational therapy students' understanding of people with psychiatric disorders. The fieldwork experiences of 16 occupational therapy undergraduates in clinical settings were studied via in-depth interviews and participant observation. An important part of the students' understanding of people with psychiatric disorders arose from the manner in which the psychiatric service system and occupational therapists have structured their dealings with people as patients or clients. Students were influenced by system practices such as the classification of people as acute/chronic, and a heavy emphasis on quantitative performance indicators of services rendered; along with an occupational therapy process that may be excessively problem-oriented, at the expense of attending to other significant personal and environmental factors within patients'/clients' lives. Such circumstances are likely to undermine students' appreciation of the humanity and individuality of people using the psychiatric service system.