Health committee  I don't know if we collect data specifically related to measuring that, although I'm going to take note and look at that. Like many other health professions, I think our workforce is 93% or 94% female. As a result, the pressures of child care, culturally and however that is, stil

Health committee  Well, this takes in elements that I and other guests here have mentioned already. One is looking at a proactive, preventative approach, making those upstream investments and preventing individuals with preventable diseases or conditions from entering the system. I'll use falls

Health committee  Thanks for that. For OTs, as I mentioned earlier, the approach will be the same. It's looking at what a person needs, wants and has to do in their daily life and overcoming some of those barriers. When we're looking at working with people with autism, primarily children but also

Health committee  —there is some extremely strong evidence around supported return to work.

Health committee  Absolutely. I guess all health care professionals have a unique value and approach to working with individuals. A cornerstone of occupational therapy is the person: who they are, what they do and what they want to do. It's this intersection of them, all the activities that matter

Health committee  Absolutely. Supporting older adults who are choosing to stay home is an area that I have practised in for the majority of my career. Most older adults I meet want to be there. You're going into the home. You're meeting with the individual in their space where they want to be.

Health committee  Absolutely. Hélène, is this something you want to take, or do you want me to continue?

Health committee  Thanks. We know from Government of Canada data that injuries cost the Canadian economy almost $27 billion annually. Seniors' falls, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada, are costing around $2 billion annually. These kinds of upstream interventions—this is about being

Health committee  Yes, of course. Outside of the public system, private occupational therapy services are billed at anywhere from $125 an hour all the way up to $200 an hour, depending on the type and the nature of the service. A service visit could be, for example, a pediatric occupational th

Health committee  That's a really great question. I don't think we collect that data. Again, it really depends on the nature of the services. For someone who is providing treatment on an ongoing basis for a chronic illness that might require weekly or biweekly intervention, that $250 or $300 nu

Health committee  I guess it will depend on the scenario in each of the jurisdictions. In some jurisdictions, occupational therapists are primarily in the public sector, but because of the way the systems are set up and because they're so different across the country, you have services also being

Health committee  I will make the remarks for today. Thank you.

Health committee  Thank you. Good afternoon, everyone, and thanks for the opportunity to present to you today. I'm Giovanna Boniface, president of CAOT and an occupational therapist who has been practising for 25 years. I'm joining you today from North Vancouver, which is situated on the lan

Health committee  We would like to talk about two things today: OT workforce issues and challenges, and making the case for universal access to OT. The OT workforce in Canada has grown from some 7,500 therapists in 1997 to over 20,000 in 2021. Although we have seen good growth, this is absolutely