For Immediate Release
Contact: Shauna LaFauci 617/353-2399 [email protected]
Pamela Barry 617-353-7476 [email protected]
BOSTON UNIVERSITY OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY STUDENTS PRESENT NATIONAL INITIATIVE AGAINST VIOLENCE
(Boston, Mass.) -
"Occupational therapy practitioners are well qualified to play a role in preventing the current epidemic of violence," says Jacobs, Boston University professor and president of the American Occupational Therapy Association. "As leaders in group education and training they can use these skills to play a role in the early stages of violence prevention, especially in the workplace and in schools."
The project began as an assignment in Jacob's "Ergonomics for Therapists" class in Boston University's SARGENT College when she gave her students three topics that focus on current issues in the media and challenged them to create an awareness campaign for each. The result are three wallet-sized brochures that provide statistics and critical safety tips should someone encounter a dangerous situation.
Jacobs hopes that occupational therapy students and practitioners will take up the cause and assist in the dissemination of these brochures. "By bringing the information to their local cities, towns and homes, a grassroots violence prevention campaign will reach the public through reliable sources in great numbers, " says Jacobs.
"The mini-brochures demonstrate the concern that occupational therapists have for public health issues," according to Jacobs. "Our hope is that people will use the information as a guideline to prevent violent situations from occurring."
This campaign began at the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) national conference in Seattle this March. Jacobs gave over 10,000 brochures to AOTA members to bring back and share with their communities. Jacobs plans to use the web as a vehicle for brochure dissemination. She also intends to create partnerships with business and industry groups to help maintain the initiative's momentum.
To increase local awareness, occupational therapy students at Sargent College along with AOTA members are providing brochures for distribution to middle schools as well as driver training programs in the Massachusetts area.
To participate in the initiative or obtain brochures for distribution, contact Karen Jacobs at 1/800/877-1383 X658.
Free brochures are also available on the web at http://www.bu.edu/sargent/OT/aotabrochures.html. For more information on occupational therapy's role in preventing violence, visit http://www.aota.org/nonmembers/area8/links/link02a.asp.
-30- April 19, 2000
RSS