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International affiliations
We play an active role in increasing the global profile of occupational therapy. One of the ways we do this is through our international relationships.
We’re a member of the Council of Occupational Therapists for the European Countries (COTEC), the European Network of Occupational Therapists Therapy in Higher Education (ENOTHE), and the World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT).
WFOT is the only international representative for occupational therapists and occupational therapy around the world. It is also the official international organisation for the promotion of occupational therapy.
Council of Occupational Therapists for the European Countries (COTEC) was established in 1986 with the purpose of co-ordinating the views of the national associations for occupational therapists in Europe and providing a strong voice for occupational therapy on a European level. The British Association of Occupational Therapists (BAOT) was a founder member. COTEC has now grown to represent 31 European occupational therapy associations and more than 180,000 occupational therapists. It is registered as a legal entity in Germany.
COTEC General Assembly
Following a major review of the structure of the organisation, a General Assembly replaced the Council and meets once a year to progress the business of the organisation. COTEC also has an Executive Committee which takes forward the Strategic Plan.
The RCOT COTEC General Assembly member is Nikki Daniels.
COTEC Strategic Plan
COTEC Strategic Plan 2021-2024 (PDF)
Facts and figures
Statistics and information are collected from the member associations each year and published in a document available from the COTEC website.
Summary of the occupational therapy profession in Europe
Register of experts
The Council of Occupational Therapists in European Countries (COTEC) is requesting occupational therapists to self-nominate as experts in various domains of practice.
COTEC has established a Register of Experts in line with the priorities identified by the European Targets for 2020 and the WHO areas for action. As a result COTEC is seeking experts in the following areas: mental health, aging population, dementia, children and adolescents, poverty reduction, primary care, equal access to healthcare systems, ICT solutions and e-health innovations, employment, oncology, palliative care, refugees and displaced people, neurology, rehabilitation.
Please visit the COTEC website for more information.
Contact: Nikki Daniels, RCOT COTEC General Assembly member through hello @rcot.co.uk
You must be a member of RCOT to join WFOT.
World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT) is the official representative of occupational therapy and occupational therapists worldwide and in 2012, celebrated its 60th anniversary (1952-2012). Occupational therapists from the UK were amongst the founders of the Federation, which is a global network of 101 member organisations, representing 550,00 occupational therapists. It is registered as a legal entity in Switzerland and has been in official relations with the World Health Organisation (WHO) since 1959.
Read more about the WFOT Member Organisation Profiles on their website.
Become a WFOT member
We are a member of WFOT. As an RCOT member you can become an individual WFOT members .
Becoming an individual member of WFOT allows you access to a wide range of benefits and discounts in addition to joining a global occupational therapy community.
Following are some of the benefits you can enjoy by becoming an individual member of WFOT:
- Gain access to the exclusive Members Only part of the WFOT website. Imperative if you want to download the latest documents, guidance and materials produced by WFOT.
- Download the latest free publications and promotional materials up to 12 months in advance of them being released as public access.
- Receive online access to the twice-yearly issues of WFOT’s international professional journal WFOT Bulletin.
- Receive 20% discount on all books produced by Wiley Publishing.
Join WFOT by emailing hello@rcot.co.uk
WFOT Position Statements and Publications
There are a number of Position Statements and Publications available on the WFOT website covering a range of topics from Education, Advanced Occupational Therapy Competencies to Telehealth.
To view them all, visit the WFOT Resources page and select 'Position Statements' or 'Publications' from the drop-down menu.
Occupational Therapy International Online Network (OTION)
In June 2016, WFOT announced the launch of the Occupational Therapy International Online Network (OTION). This is a dedicated interactive forum that enables occupational therapists, assistants and students from across the world to network, share ideas and communicate with the profession as a whole.
OTION is a free resource that requires a simple registration process. WFOT urge everyone to register and share their ideas and feedback. A number of forums have been established within the OTION platform:
- Education
- Practice
- Research
- Students
- Working in another country
- Studying in another country
- Congress 2018
The success of OTION will be reliant on the engagement and involvement of the occupational therapy community internationally and WFOT welcome your active support.
Contact
RCOT delegate to WFOT Karin Orman
Email: karin.orman@rcot.co.uk
RCOT Alternate to WFOT Sureshkumar Kamalakannan
European Network of Occupational Therapy in Higher Education (ENOTHE) is a non-profit network of universities and other partners, such as RCOT, which contributes to the development of occupational therapy in Europe by promoting lifelong professional occupational therapy education. Their Strategy for 2021-2025 can be found on the ENOTHE website.
The European Network for Occupational Therapists in Higher Education (ENOTHE) develops and harmonises the standards in existing occupational therapy programmes. The Council of Occupational Therapists for the European Countries (COTEC) initiated the European Network for Occupational Therapists in Higher Education (ENOTHE) in 1995. Individual education establishments join the network and the College's Education and Learning Department is an active participant.
Annual Meetings
The 2023 ENOTHE annual meeting was held in Oviedo, Spain in October. The theme for the conference was the European Year of Skill 2023 with a focus on lifelong learning, empowering students and teachers and digital transitions and innovations in teaching.
Carolyn Hay, Head of Education has supported the annual meetings as an abstract reviewer since 2021.
Claire Ainsworth, Professional Advisor – Education and Carolyn Hay had an abstract accepted titled: 'Professional body collaboration to support practice-based learning: Stronger together’. Sharing the AHP principles of practice-based learning, the presentation raised the profile of occupational therapy placements across the UK, generating interest and further discussion. Read our AHP principles of practice-based learning.
2024 will see the first Occupational Therapy Europe Congress, held 15–19 October 2024 in Kraków. The Congress will bring together the European Network of Occupational Therapy in Higher Education (ENOTHE), Council of Occupational Therapists for the European Countries (COTEC) and Research in Occupational Therapy and Occupational Science (ROTOS) – three of the largest occupational therapy focussed European organisations. Visit the Congress website for more information.