Programme

Moderator

Rod Charlie Delos Reyes
Lecturer
University of Batangas (Philippines)
PhD student
University of the Philippines Manila Center for Gender and Women Studies (Philippines)

12:00 PM - 12:30 PM (CEST)
Opening ceremony

Prof Dr Jens Schneider
Professor
Head of the Occupational Therapy study program
Trier University of Applied Sciences (Germany)

Prof Dr Dorit Schumann
President
Trier University of Applied Sciences (Germany)

Lily Marlene J. Hernandez-Bohn
President
University of Batangas (Philippines)

12:30 PM – 1:15 PM (CEST)
Keynote speech 

Prof Dr Jeanne Jackson
Professor Emerita
University College Cork (Ireland)

Using occupations to actualize lesbian lives in a situated place and time
In the early 1990s I began to wonder: What does lesbianism have to do with occupation? That thought, over a glass of wine, emerged into a passionate, consuming dissertation about lesbian identities and everyday occupations. Today, I will talk about aspects of that dissertation focussing on the struggles of choosing to study lesbians in my world of occupational therapy, and the delight of hearing the occupational stories of lesbians finding their way in a world that at times despised them and at times loved them. I will highlight various ways that occupation was central to the experience of lesbian authenticity, and how occupations were used to narrow the, at times, disparate worldviews of lesbians and heterosexuals. Politics at an individual and national level will be a theme that runs through my stories. Most importantly, we will explore why sexual orientation is central to occupational science research and practice, and consider ways to move forward.

1:15 PM – 1:45 PM (CEST)
Presentation (Room 1)

Niall Kirrane
Clinical Specialist Occupational Therapist
National Gender Service (Ireland)

Doing – Being – Becoming – Belonging: Developing the role of Occupational Therapy in Ireland’s National Gender Service
Occupational Therapy has not traditionally been part of transgender healthcare services, despite research suggesting that transgender people can face difficulties with occupational engagement and participation (Dowers et al. 2019), and recognition that social and occupational functioning can often be impacted by gender dysphoria (APA, 2013). Following successful advocacy for the role, an Occupational Therapy service was established in Ireland’s National Gender Service in 2021. The service supports people, at all stages of transition, to maintain meaningful occupational engagement. The work of Wilcock (1998) has guided the development of this service, and will be used to share how Occupational Therapists can work in transgender healthcare to support doing, being, becoming and belonging.

1:15 PM – 1:45 PM (CEST)
Presentation (Room 2)

Dr Laetitia Zeeman
Researcher
University of Brighton (UK)

What is the impact of alcohol on LGBTQ+ lives?
Set in the context of broader tensions with a growing awareness of the health inequalities of LGBTQ+ communities, this paper will present a systematic review of alcohol use amongst gender and sexual minority people via the following questions: 1) What is the prevalence of alcohol use amongst gender and sexual minority people in the UK? 2) What are the international interventions and the protective factors employed to address the alcohol-related support needs of gender and sexual minority people? The results are presented in light of global ideological tensions where progressive cultural and social influences related to gender and sexuality are seen by some as threatening traditional family values, religious beliefs or social practices. In response, the counter ideologies emerging may present as nationalist and homophobic, which could challenge our legal protection with implications for the lives, partnerships and health equity of LGBTQ+ people.

1:45 PM – 3:00 PM (CEST)
Panel discussion: Inclusive curricula in Occupational Therapy and Occupational Science degree programmes

Moderator: Dr Karen McCarthy
Associate Professor
Dominican University of California (USA)

Panelist: Dr Louis-Pierre Auger
Postdoctoral Fellow
McGill University (Canada)

Panelist: Dr Heather Baglee
Course Director for Occupational Therapy
Leeds Beckett University (UK)

Panelist: Prof Dr Ted Brown
Professor
Undergraduate BOccTher(Hons) Course Director
Monash University (Australia)

Panelist: Dr Michael Sy
Senior Researcher
Zurich University of Applied Sciences (Switzerland)

Panelist: Elvin Williams
Lecturer
Queen Margaret University (UK)

Panelist: Dr Andrea Yupanqui-Concha
Associate Professor
University of Magallanes (Chile)
Researcher
Millennium Nucleus Studies on Disability and Citizenship (DISCA) (Chile)

3:00 PM – 3:15 PM (CEST)
Closing ceremony

Dr Jaime Daniel Leite Junior
Lecturer
Federal University of São Carlos (Brazil)

Moderator

Judith Schares
Student assistant
Trier University of Applied Sciences (Germany)

12:00 PM – 12:05 PM (CEST)
Opening ceremony

Prof Dr Jens Schneider
Professor
Head of the Occupational Therapy study program
Trier University of Applied Sciences (Germany)

12:05 PM – 12:50 PM (CEST)
Keynote speech

Dr Rodolfo Morrison
Research Professor
University of Las Americas (Chile)
University of Chile (Chile)

LGBTIQ+ people and State political action: Gender and parenting occupations among relations of power and resistance
This presentation aims to analyze parenting occupations in LGBTIQ+ families and their relationship with the State. The theoretical supports include approaches to governmentality, subjectivation, performativity, along with perspectives from Occupational Science. Triangulation is employed as a qualitative methodology, including documentary analysis and interviews with 20 families and 10 public officials. The results show that LGBTIQ+ families develop resistance strategies in the face of limited state recognition and how state policies are constructed around ideas of gender, sexuality, and parenthood from a heteronormative perspective, which affects the relationship between families and public officials. The conclusions highlight the influence of state power on family subjectivation and the importance of understanding parenting occupations as practices influenced, but not determined, by the context, allowing for agency and resistance in marginalized groups.

12:50 PM – 1:20 PM (CEST)
Presentation (Room 1)

Yael Wyssocky
Head of "Pride and OT" interest group in the ISOT
A board member of ISOT
Israeli Society of Occupational Therapy (ISOT; Israel)

Transitioning together: An OT's journey with her transgender son
This talk follows the journey of a 16 yrs. old transgender teenager through his Occupational Therapist mom's point of view. It narratively reflects the empowering and therapeutic influence of supportive relationships, environments and meaningful occupations on well-being and health. A better understanding of everyday life experiences can be life saving for many trans teenagers around the world. We will discuss the essential role of health care professionals in general, and Occupational Therapists in particular through this challenging never ending journey of transitioning. It is our role and responsibility to create a safe and enabling physical, social, emotional, political and virtual environments for transgender teenagers.

12:50 PM – 1:20 PM (CEST)
Presentation (Room 2)

Prof Dr Jens Schneider
Professor
Head of the Occupational Therapy study program
Trier University of Applied Sciences (Germany)

Co-authors
Dr Lee Price
Retired lecturer
University of Brighton (UK)

Dr Laetitia Zeeman
Researcher
University of Brighton (UK)

Dr Natalie Edelman
Researcher
University of Kent (UK)

Exploring trans men’s occupations through Dewey’s lens of action
For many trans people, the gender transition process can cause problematic situations in various areas of life. This presentation is based on a narrative inquiry exploring the experiences of trans men from an occupational perspective. It illustrates how Dewey’s lens of action (occupation) contributes to an understanding of the gender transition process. Trans men faced with problematic situations during their gender transition process performed meaningful and psychologically rewarding occupations in order to progress in their gender transition. These occupations often possessed a transformative capacity. Dewey’s lens of action is a useful tool for understanding the choice of these occupations in the light of the framing situational elements, the consequences of the performance of these occupations for the gender transition process, the reasons why they were transformative and how they contributed to the occupational lives of the trans men.

1:20 PM – 1:50 PM
Presentation (Room 1)

Dr Jaime Daniel Leite Junior
Lecturer
Federal University of São Carlos (Brazil)

Practice with the population who experience dissidence of gender and sexuality: What is our reality?
It has become increasingly common in occupational therapy the development of knowledge and practice with the population who experience dissidence of gender and sexuality. However, there is a lack of investigation into these practices, summarizing and analyzing what has been done. Dr Jaime Leite Jr. will bring formulations based on his PhD research. The researcher investigated occupational therapists who worked with dissidence of gender and sexuality in Brazil. This presentation will provide an overview of these practices, analyzing the movements that these professionals sought to develop to maintain the status quo of exclusion and/or the intentions of social transformation.

1:20 PM – 1:50 PM
Presentation (Room 2)

Rod Charlie Delos Reyes
Lecturer
University of Batangas (Philippines)
PhD student
University of the Philippines Manila Center for Gender and Women Studies (Philippines)

Co-authors
Leilani Apostol-Nicodemus, Erica Gabrielle Delos Retes, & Jamie Ann G. Arnes
Researchers
University of the Philippines Manila Center for Gender and Women Studies (Philippines)

Perspectives and experiences of the LGBT community in Filipino healthcare: A photovoice project
The Philippines is regarded as one of the most gay-friendly countries in Asia; however, the acceptance of LGBT individuals is conditional. Despite nearly two decades of legislative debates, a law ensuring protection against discrimination for the LGBT community remains unenacted. This contributes to the continuous struggle of Filipino LGBT individuals for fair and equal opportunities. Healthcare professionals play a crucial role in providing quality services and promoting access to essential social determinants of health, yet a lack of knowledge and skills among these professionals exacerbates health disparities for the LGBT community. This study employs the Occupational Justice Framework, pADL (activities of daily living) key questions, and the Participatory Occupational Justice Framework to explore and describe the healthcare access and utilization experiences of LGBT members through visual representations. Using Photovoice, a community-based participatory research (CBPR) method, the study engages participants in documenting and discussing their community’s strengths and concerns. The study’s goals are to empower LGBT individuals to photograph and record their healthcare experiences, promote community discussions about critical healthcare issues, and provide opportunities for community change by engaging policy and decision-makers. By highlighting the critical role of healthcare professionals in mitigating health disparities and promoting occupational justice, this research aims to improve health outcomes and ensure equitable healthcare access for the Filipino LGBT community.

1:50 PM – 3:05 PM (CEST)
Panel discussion: Future developments in occupational therapy and occupational science research regarding sexuality and gender

Moderator: Dr Ryan Lavalley
Assistant Professor
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (USA)

Panelist: Raheleh Ghasseminia
Associate Professor
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (USA)
PhD student
University of North Carolina Greensboro (USA)

Panelist: Prof Débora/Luna Grandón Valenzuela
Professor
Universidad Austral de Chile (Chile)
PhD candidate
Universidad de Chile (Chile)

Panelist: Dr Phoebe Kisubi Mbasalaki
Lecturer
Director of the Centre for Intimate Sexual Citizenship
University of Essex (UK)

Panelist: Dr Allison Mula
PhD candidate
University College Cork (Ireland)
Queen Margaret University (UK)

Panelist: Dr Sakshi Tickoo
Registered Occupational Therapist
Sex, Love, And OT (India & Australia)

3:05 PM – 3:20 PM (CEST)
Closing ceremony 

Prof Dr Jens Schneider
Professor
Head of the Occupational Therapy study program
Trier University of Applied Sciences (Germany)

Dr Jaime Daniel Leite Junior
Lecturer
Federal University of São Carlos (Brazil)

Rod Charlie Delos Reyes
Lecturer
University of Batangas (Philippines)
PhD student
University of the Philippines Manila Center for Gender and Women Studies (Philippines)