Occupational therapy defined as a complex intervention: a 5-year review

This paper describes the review of the impact of the College of Occupational Therapists' publication, Occupational therapy defined as a complex intervention (Creek 2003). The background to the publication is outlined briefly. The method of data collection and the descriptive-explanatory method of data analysis are described. The three main findings are presented: occupational therapists have continued to access the definition throughout the 5 years since it was published; the definition has been read and used both in the United Kingdom and in other countries; and the definition is understood and used in a variety of different ways and for different purposes. The paper concludes that the definition of occupational therapy as a complex intervention captured a major shift in how occupational therapists understand the world, but that this way of thinking needs to be embedded more fully into all pre-registration and post-registration education programmes.