Innovative occupational therapy service provision on college campuses: supporting student wellbeing and success
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Date
2025-07-01
Authors
Hunt, Eithne
Lewis, Kieran
Nolan, Clodagh
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
SAGE Publishing
Published Version
Abstract
Many universities internationally are committed to widening participation and increasing access to higher education for all. Increasingly, higher education institutions (HEIs) are establishing occupational therapy services to address a range of student needs including those of students with physical and sensory disabilities, specific learning difficulties and mental health conditions, as well as neurodiverse students and students from marginalised communities (Eichler and Keptner, 2023). Occupational therapy practitioners working in higher education also play an important role in improving the learning experience, success and wellbeing of all students. Worryingly, the number of UK undergraduate students reporting mental health difficulties has tripled over the past 7 years requiring novel responses to complement and extend traditional supports already in place on many campuses (Sanders and Ellingwood, 2025). Occupational therapy practitioners are well placed to design and deliver interventions to better equip students to be well and succeed at university (Hunt, 2021). In June 2025, the International Health Promoting Campuses conference took place in Limerick, Ireland. We hosted a symposium at this international conference showcasing the role of occupational therapy in HEI in Ireland. In this editorial, we present one of the main international policy drivers for this work and share some of the ways that occupational therapy practitioners are enacting this policy relating to student mental health, creating significant value and benefit to HEIs and the students they serve.
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Keywords
Occupational therapy , Student needs , Higher education , ~Occupational Science & Occupational Therapy - Journal articles~
Citation
Hunt, E., Lewis, K. and Nolan, C. (2025) 'Innovative occupational therapy service provision on college campuses: supporting student wellbeing and success', British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 03080226251351488 (3pp). https://doi.org/10.1177/03080226251351488
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© 2025, the Authors. Reprinted by permission of SAGE Publications. This is a post-peer-review, pre-copyedit version of the following article: Hunt, E., Lewis, K. and Nolan, C. (2025) 'Innovative occupational therapy service provision on college campuses: supporting student wellbeing and success', British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 03080226251351488 (3pp). The final authenticated version is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1177/03080226251351488