St Patrick’s Mental Health Services (SPMHS) is partnering with Trinity College Dublin’s Department of Occupational Therapy to offer clinical placements for students in the Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy (Honours) programme.
Helping students learn through real world experience
Occupational therapy helps people take part in everyday activities that matter to them. In mental health, this means supporting people to live more independently, feel well, and enjoy a better quality of life.
Through this partnership, students will get real-life experience working with people experiencing mental health difficulties. They will build on what they have learned in lectures by working directly with service users. This hands-on experience will help prepare them for careers as skilled and confident occupational therapists.
At SPMHS, occupational therapists work with service users in many different ways, including:
- supporting lifestyle changes and setting recovery goals
- helping people build skills for independent living
- making everyday tasks easier or more enjoyable
- creating balanced and meaningful routines
- finding social supports and activities
- preparing for discharge from hospital and staying well at home.
What students can expect from placement
Students on placement will have the opportunity to:
- work directly with people who have different mental health needs
- use recovery-focused approaches that support everyday living, not just treat symptoms
- build their skills in therapy techniques, assessments, and treatment planning
- learn from a wide team of professionals, including psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses, social workers, and others
- gain experience in specialist areas such as addiction, older adult mental health, young adult mental health, and eating disorders.
Working together for better mental healthcare
Sherrie Buckley, Occupational Therapy Manager at SPMHS, said: “St Patrick’s Mental Health Services and Trinity College Dublin have a longstanding history of collaboration, and we are delighted to expand our partnership through the facilitation of clinical placements for occupational therapy students at Trinity.
“By providing students with practical experience in mental health settings, we not only support their professional development but also help to strengthen the quality of care we provide to those experiencing mental health difficulties. This partnership will help to ensure that future occupational therapists are better equipped to work with individuals experiencing a mental health difficulty, fostering a well-trained, compassionate workforce that is committed to supporting people in their mental health recovery journeys and empowering them to live fulfilling lives.”
Dr Michelle Spirtos, Head of the Department of Occupational Therapy at Trinity College Dublin, said: “We are delighted to solidify our collaborative relationship with St Patrick’s Mental Health Services. This formalised link with the Occupational Therapy Department will provide excellent opportunities for practice education placements for our occupational therapy students. Mental health practice is an important area for the profession, and the Occupational Therapy department in St Patrick’s Mental Health Services has excellent areas of expertise. We look forward to our students having the opportunity to experience this.”
Supporting education across mental health disciplines
SPMHS is proud to be a teaching hospital. We regularly work with universities to train students across different areas of mental health care, including nursing, medicine, pharmacy and now, occupational therapy.
This new partnership marks another step in our commitment to shaping a stronger, more skilled mental health workforce for the future.
