Date and Time: Wednesday October 7, 2026, from 6-7:30 p.m.
Chairperson(s): Emily Walker, OT, OTR, Allyson Lewis, OT, OTR, Rosa Colorado, OT, OTR
Location: Zoom - link to be sent out day before the event
Title: The Transformative Power of Occupation
Speaker: Paul Filkins OT, OTR
Learning Objectives:
1. Review / Discuss the historic components of the founding and formative years of Occupational Therapy.
2. Review / Discuss the centrality of Occupation within Occupational Therapy.
3. Review / Discuss how the engagement in Occupation drives health outcomes through the redefinition of the self.
Bio/Focus:
For the past twenty-five years I have worked primarily with pre-school and school aged children in a clinic setting and then as a school-based OT in Southern California focused on gross motor,
fine motor and sensory integration. In moving back to western MA in 2021 to care for my elderly mother, I have worked in mental health initially as the Occupational Therapist and for the last 4 years as the Director and Occupational Therapist of two mental health programs
whose focus is working with older children and teenage adolescents across a varied range of diagnostic categories.
References:
1. Anderson, L., T., Reed, K., L. The History of Occupational Therapy, Chapters 1-4., Slack Incorporated. 2017
2. Brown, C., Munoz, J., P., Stoffle, V., C., Occupational Therapy for Mental Health, A Vision of Participation, Chapter 11. F.A. Davis. 2025
3. Babulal, G., M., Selvaratnam, A., Taff, S., D. Existentialism in Occupational Therapy: Implications for Practice, Research and Education. Occupational Therapy in Health Care. 2018
4. Hasselkus, B., R., The Meaning of Everyday Occupation, Slack Inc., 2002
Event registration will close 4 p.m. the day prior to event (Tuesday, October 6) or when event reaches full capacity. Please be sure to register in advance
Please remember to keep this copy for your own records and keep it with your certificate of CEUs (because if you do get audited, both pieces are needed for proof of attendance) MAOT is not responsible for maintaining records for contact hours.
Thank you.
