About

Program overview

Many early-career occupational therapists enter practice feeling underprepared for the complexity of community and private practice work.

OT Sparks: Foundations for Practice is a 12-month professional development and supervision program designed to bridge this gap through practical skill-building, structured learning, and ongoing support. The program is grounded in real-world clinical challenges and supports therapists to build confidence, clarity, and professional capability over time.

Who is it for?

This program is well suited to:
• Early-career OTs (0–5 years)
• Community and private practice clinicians
• New graduate OTs seeking structure and confidence
• OTs working with mixed or complex caseloads
• OTs wanting additional support to complement 1:1 supervision

Who is running it?

Sarah Smith — Occupational Therapist

Sarah Smith graduated with Honours from University of Newcastle in 2005. She has since built a robust career in community-based practice within the Newcastle region, including a range of senior and management roles.

Sarah has been providing supervision to other occupational therapists for over 18 years. She has completed the following professional development to further strengthen her supervision practice:
• Occupational Therapy Australia – Professional Supervision Program (2022)
• Michelle Bihary – Professional Supervision Training (2021)

In 2024, Sarah also successfully completed Occupational Therapy Australia’s Professional Supervisor’s Endorsement Pilot.

She is committed to strengthening the capability and confidence of early-career therapists across Australia.

Dates

Friday 31 July 2026 - Friday 18 December 2026 (UTC+10)

Contact Event Organiser

REMAINING 2026 SESSIONS

31/07/2026

Session 7:2026 Making it work - Strategies for managing a mixed and evolving caseload

This session supports development of structure, prioritisation, and sustainable practices when working across varied client groups

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28/08/2026

Session 8:2026 Working across the system - Effective interdisciplinary collaboration in OT

This session focuses on real-world collaboration outside traditional MDT structures

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25/09/2026

Session 9:2026 Learning from practice - Reflective skills for professional growth

This session builds practice, repeatable relfection habits that support genuine growth

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30/10/2026

Session 10:2026 Strengthening your foundation - Confidence for the evolving OT

This session helps early career OTs understand confidence as a skill that develops through experience, reflection, support, and intentional strategies

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27/11/2026

Session 11:2026 Sustainable OT practice: Self-care and resilience

This session helps OTs understand the demands of community practice and build practical strategies that strengthen wellbeing, resilience and professional identity

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18/12/2026

Session 12:2026 Charting your path - Professional development and lifelong learning

This session brings structure, reassurance and clarity to the next phase of growth