Results of the conference
On May 18, 2023, Drohobych Ivan Franko State Pedagogical University and the Faculty of Human Health and Natural Sciences held an International scientific and practical conference on the results of the Erasmus+ KA2 UKROTHE project ("Development of an occupational therapy curriculum").
The scientific event took place on the ZOOM platform in the form of plenary and sectional meetings. The head of the organizing committee of the conference, Doctor of Pedagogical Sciences, Professor Mykola Lukyanchenko expressed special thanks to the co-organizers and participants of the conference, among whom were Ukrainian and foreign scientists: Khmelnytskyi National University; Prydniprovsk State Academy of Physical Culture and Sports; VIVES University of Applied Sciences (Belgium); University of Rzeszów (Poland), Lviv State University of Physical Culture named after I. Boberski, University of Physical Education and Sports named after Jendze Sniadecki in Gdańsk (Poland); Polish Society of Sciences, Ivano-Frankivsk National Medical University, Latvian Academy of Sports Education (Riga) and others.
Associate Professor Ihor Hrynyk, vice-rector for international relations and information activities, Drohobych University, addressed the participants of the conference with a welcome speech; Sharon Schillewaert, manager of the UKROTHE project at the VIVES University of Applied Sciences.More than 100 participants took part in the conference. The working languages were Ukrainian and English. Thanks to simultaneous translation, each of the conference participants had the opportunity to listen to reports in Ukrainian or English.At the plenary session of the conference, the partners of the UKROTHE project made presentations on the issues of occupational therapy: Professor Oleh Bazilchuk, Doctor of Pedagogical Sciences, Head of the Department of Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Khmelnytskyi National University, Ukraine - "Ways of implementation of the UKROTHE project: material and technical support of educational and professional occupational therapy programs"; Lorenzo Billiet, Vives University of Applied Sciences, Belgium - "International Classification of Functioning Disability and Health. The use of a core Set"; as well as a participant of the International Erasmus+ project "REHAB" Doctor Kateryna Timruk-Skoropad, professor at the Department of physical therapy and occupational therapy, Lviv State University of Physical Culture named after I. Bobersky, Ukraine - "Strengthening of educational programs in the specialty 227 "Therapy and rehabilitation" in cooperation with international projects".
The moderator of the section on occupational therapy was the head of the working group of the UKROTHE project from the Khmelnytskyi National University, Professor Oleh Bazylchuk, with the technical support of the event provided by project partners from Drohobych University - Associate Professor. Natalya Zakalyak, Senior Lecturer Yuriy Rohalya, Lecturer Oksana Fihura. Reports on occupational therapy were made by coordinators of the UKROTHE Vives University of Applied Sciences (Belgium) project, Anne-Marie Denolf - "Sherborne Developmental Movement (SDM)" and Jolien Biccler - "Preschool children with autism. Parents @ the center of occupational therapy". The experience of occupational therapy practice was shared by the occupational therapists from "Modrychi"rehabilitation center in Truskavets and the partners of the UKROTHE project - Vira Koval and Veronika Tokmakova.
The reports presented at the section meeting considered the problems of occupational therapists' training in Ukraine, the experience of training occupational therapists in Europe, the results of studying international experience in this field and ways of its introduction into the system of higher education in Ukraine. Participants of the UKROTHE project from the Dnipro State Academy of Physical Culture and Sports and Drohobych State Pedagogical University - Associate Professors Serhiy Rokutov and Natalya Zakalyak presented the results of the project implementation in the Ukrainian universities.
The conference ended with a lively discussion of reports and challenges that stand in the way of educational training of occupational therapists in Ukraine according to European standards.We are sincerely grateful to all the organizers and participants of the conference and we look forward to further cooperation!