THE VALUE OF OCCUPATION AS THE CORE OF TREATMENT - SANDYS EXPERIENCE

Since 1917, when the occupational therapy profession was first establi shed the therapeutic value of occupation hat been questioned, research ed, valorized, and even trivialized. This article discusses one typica l occupation-centered treatment, namely a community outing the shoppin g spree. The purpose is to articulate the value of occupation-centered intervention and particularly (a) its importance for building rapport between patient and therapist so that genuinely meaningful treatment can be carried out; (b) its role in providing opportunities for patien ts to imagine futures through felt meanings and future images; and (c) its integrative qualities with respect to identities and performance components.