Guestbook
You're invited to "sign" our OOFRAS guestbook!
To "sign", contact us with your "guestbook" entry, name and location.
Wow, I'm impressed! Having met some of you, including Clarissa, in Sydney during the WFOT Congress, I have been looking forward to coming along for a browse. What an exciting prospect before me as a second year student. The passion and integrity of those involved is to be commended and I hope to instill such values into my career as, first a student, then a practitioner. I shall definately be spreading the word around campus. This will not be my last visit!! Signed: Rebekah Sprlyan (Western Australia, 3/ 8/ 06)
Hi!!!! I'm Gita, an occupational therapist from INDIA, working in Delhi. I have this found website to be unique and inspiring. I do agree that most of the occupational therapists are ill-equipped and hence ignorant of refugee issues. I had an oppurtunity to visit a refugee camp meant for Kashmiri pandits at Delhi. All I could do was to sympathise with their situation. But after going through this web page, I think I will view them through a different perspective. Great job indeed. Just keep it up. I too will try to gather more information so that we too can think in these lines at INDIA. All the best...bye! Signed: Gita (India, 1/ 8/ 06)
I am an aged OT with lots of experience in brain injury. I cycled 300+km through part of Laos last year in a group with my husband and disabled son. I have been working in libraries for the past 10 yrs as my OT work at home was enough. Now I'm interested to return to the OT profession, especially when I see exciting developments like this website. I have just heard about the upcoming world conference to be held in Sydney so I hope to be involved somehow. Maybe as a volunteer. Signed: Penelope Stephen (Australia, 10/6/06)
I am working in a specialist General Practice in the North East of England, providing psychological therapies to refugees and people seeking asylum. In the UK refugees are being shamelessly used in political posturing, and are stigmatized as work-shy, greedy and dangerous people who are here to bleed our country of its resources. In reality I see couragous, resourceful individuals who are forced by the asylum process to waste their potential by playing a prolonged and destructive waiting game.
Every week I see people eroded by the boredom, isolation and passivity generated by their forced occupational limitations. In no other area of occupational therapy have I found myself working against a system so destructive to my clients' mental health. I work to help people see the person they were before they came - to see their own potential and maintain a sense of direction and productivity.
The resiliance and diversity of my client group is a source of great reward for me as a therapist - I have learnt a great deal about the world, and about the nature of people across the globe. I feel honoured that people are willing to share experiences with me, in spite of the reception elswhere in the UK. Occupational therapy feels uniquely placed to provide the kind of responsive appreciation of what clients really value and care about - to understand the lifespan issues and the occupational needs that go unfulifilled. Signed: Helen Claire Smith (UK, 18/05/06)
Greetings! I am Tina. I am an OT since 2002! I work with internally displaced population in the republic of Georgia since 2005 in projects donated by Norwegian Refugee Council; but I believe OT can do far more to explain and show the power of occupation and creativity towards achieving satisfactory life! Working in a developing country like mine, one can clearly see connection of politics, poverty, exclusion, isolation and occupational deprivation. Signed: Tinatin Kavtaradze (Georgia, 12/05/06)
I am an OT working in Wagga in Occ Rehab Services. In a voluntary capacity through the Multicultural Council, I have just become involved with a family from Sudan to help the children with homework and study. I am sure there are many other things I can help with too.... I would love info on how to best approach such a task... and basicallly everything there is to know about working with people from Sudan! Signed: Catherine Stoove (Wagga, 11/05/06)
Congratulations OOFRAS Coordination Team! This is my first time to browse the website and I'm very impressed. It contains a walth of information and a lot of great ideas that can be persued to further our work in this area. I'm sure students and practitioners alike will find this website very useful. Well done! One publication which I recommend as a resources is called Refugee Transitions published three times per year by the Forum of Australian Services for Surviviors of Torture and Trauma (FASSTT). Signed: Ruth Beltran (Sydney, 11/05/06)
I saw your ad in the OT Vic newsletter and found the website an excellent resource. Multicultural news travels slowly to regional victoria and its great to see a growing force of people advocating for asylum seekers, especially OTs. Signed: Brett Toy (Bendigo, 09/05/06)
I'd heard of OOFRAS before, but not been able to find out much - I was thrilled to see the article in this month's Victorian OT news, & jumped on the net immediately. The website is great! I will be attending the WFOT congress, and would be interested in networking opportunities & in knowing when your presentation is (so I make sure I get to it!) Signed: Lorrae Mynard (05/05/06)
Having only recently returned from a short-term volunteer trip in Africa, and planning to return again on another project within the next year, I want to say ‘thank you’ to the OOFRAS team for the development of the OOFRAS website – this is such a relevant, inspiring and much-needed resource which clearly articulates and expresses the needs of refugees & asylum seekers. The experiences and knowledge shared on this website will clearly be beneficial to OTs working or volunteering with socially disadvantaged populations in Australia and overseas.
I’ve recently read a biography of one of the Lost Boys of Sudan – a recommended read. It is one of the many biographies written by survivors of the genocides & civil wars in Africa which gives readers a small insight into the atrocities that have been occurring in countries such as Sudan & Rwanda for many decades, but which most in the Western world would prefer to turn a blind eye to. I look forward to being able to learn & find opportunities to put into practice (professionally and personally) the valuable knowledge & experiences shared by other OTs on the OOFRAS website. Signed: Kellie Bowden (OT, Brisbane, 22/04/2006)
Well done! I can't describe how proud I am of the next generation of OTs and your professional committment, compassion and determination to address the neglected of the last decade. As an OT working in Occupational Rehabilitation in Sydney, occassionally I have clients who are refugees who have found work but are victims of the prejudices from our community. Only this last week, I have assessed a potential "bludger" who turned out to be from Iran, no family here but too proud to ask his friends or church for help after being sent home alone in a taxi one week after spinal surgery! He certainly wasn't "playing the system", but rather desperate to know how to get food and go to the toilet safely. Let me know how I can help Signed: Joan O'Donnell (OT, Sydney, 10/04/06)
Thanks Clarissa for the website recommendation . . I've only spent 30 min browsing (I need all day!) and so impressed!! It is a very practical website too - very OT! Now that I've returned to Brisbane, I'm looking at getting my teeth into something like this . . I had in my head some kind of human rights initiative, well what's better than OT all mixed in!. . . Can't wait to research more and find out what you are up too! Signed: Linda Rylands (OT, Brisbane, 12/04/06)
Great website, OOFRAS colleagues! There is so much scope for occupational therapy in areas of need outside traditional health, education and welfare institutions. I’m glad that you are venturing out so early in your careers with a vision to help people who may be socially disadvantaged. Can you suggest some ideas of how South-East Queensland OT’s can be involved? Signed: Sandra Kirkwood (OT, Ipswich, 8/04/06)
Well done guys, this is a fantastic beginning to the website, and the end of an amazing piece of work for and on behalf of the OT profession, of which I am very proud and by which I am inspired. I am sending the link out to all sorts of people as soon as I get the nod! Let the networker at it! Signed: Jeanette Isaccs-Young (OT, Woombye, 22/03/06)
The OOFRAS website looks great, congratulations! I would strongly encourage everyone to take time out and have a good browse. I am forwarding the link to all my workmates. Great timing – tomorrow is Harmony Day. Signed: Katherine Iwanicki (OT, Brisbane, 20/03/06)
Congratulations on a well researched and exciting website. I am proud to see the OT Community spirit shining through to all areas of practice. Signed: Rachel Kipping (OT, Brisbane, 20/03/06)
I am an occupational therapist working in mental health (acute and community). I came to Australia as a refugee 10 years ago from Former Yugoslavia. I lived in various refugee camps for 5 years. I witnessed "occupational chaos" around me, despair of my family and friends and their loss of occupational roles. I now realise how valuable our profession is and the power of "occupation" in healing for refugees or displaced individuals in general. If we just had OT's there!
I also witnessed the despair of newly arrived refugees to Australia (i.e. family, friends, myself) because of no or little English spoken, sense of being alone and lost in a foreign country. I had to develop a new role- a role of helping my mother and friends with negotiating a new and unfamiliar environment, as I was the only one speaking any English. My role as a child suddenly became one of the guide for family and I had to take on a huge responsibility- a completely new role to me. Many of those people I came with developped depression and already came with PTSD which worsened because of sense of despair. OT's have a great potential to help the refugees in Australia by providing education and help them regain their occupational roles or develop new roles to help prevent mental illness and alleviate trauma.
I would like to see this website and this initiative develop into OT program or service offerred routinely to newly arrived refugees/assylum seekers in Australia. detention Centers and any new group of refugees in Australia should have OT services provided. Many compliments to your website! Hope we can all contribute to it. Signed: Bojana Tatatrevic (OT, Brisbane, 15/ 03/06)
Congratulations OOFRAS team on a well researched and clearly presented website. I especially loved reading the quotes – it seems that occupation and its benefits have been well acknowledged by many great minds of the past. I applaud you all on your initiative, courage and hard work. Keep up the good fight! Signed: Carmen Mitchell (OT, Brisbane, 14/03/06)
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