This month’s issue has a real focus on you, our members, and why you volunteer your time to support RCOT, be it on Council, for your region, or for one of our Specialist Sections. We kick off with a Q&A with Odeth Richardson, who took over the reins as our new Chair of Council, from Professor Diane Cox, on 1 July.
And now you too can volunteer to join your branch’s committee and support your local or specialist community to thrive. Our regions and Specialist Sections are looking for volunteers for their committees and we hear from members who are already involved about what motivated them, what they’ve learned from the experience, how volunteering for RCOT has helped them at work, and why they think you should think about putting yourself forward today.
Life skills are another theme this month. When occupational therapists working in the North Monmouthshire Community Mental Health Team identified that there were a high number of individuals living in the community who had poor cooking skills, they were keen to tackle the issue. Carmen Lewis and Richard Wheeler share how they got on.
Then we hear from Jonathan Hill, an occupational therapist working for a Driving Mobility centre, who focuses on enabling people to retain or gain independence with driving or other methods of transportation.
And Diane Sawyers, Senior Occupational Therapist at the Derwent Clinic, talks about setting up an innovative walking group within the grounds of Beamish Museum, a pioneering award-winning open-air museum in County Durham.
Finally, we talk to Venus Madden who is the new Clinical Fellow to Suzanne Rastrick, the Chief Allied Health Professions Officer for NHS England about her role and ambitions, to mark the launch of the new AHP strategy – AHPs Deliver.
We hope you enjoy this month’s issue, and don’t forget, if you want to contribute to a future issue, please get in touch at editorial@rcot.co.uk. As well as the printed copy, you can also view the magazine online.