Speech-language pathology research in the Philippines in retrospect: Perspectives from a developing country

Stakeholder perspectives following implementation of Vietnam's first speech-language pathology degrees: recommendations for future curriculum development

PURPOSE

To investigate perspectives of multiple stakeholders involved in development and delivery of Vietnam's first speech-language pathology degrees and derive recommendations for future degrees in Vietnam and other Majority World countries.

METHODS

An exploratory-descriptive qualitative research design using focus groups and individual semi-structured interviews in the preferred language (English or Vietnamese) was used, with 70 participants from five stakeholder groups: project managers, students, academic educators, placement supervisors and interpreters. Transcriptions were analysed using thematic network analysis.

RESULTS

Analysis identified five organising themes: (1) People enjoyed working with/learning from others; (2) Benefits from/to stakeholders; (3) The pandemic impacted program delivery and learning; (4) Practical challenges; (5) Preparation with flexibility required for success and sustainability. From the five organising themes, one synthesising global theme was developed, conveying that satisfying international collaborations require preparation, support, high quality interpreting, and management of challenges.

CONCLUSIONS

Recommendations highlight the need for preparation, collaboration, support to manage challenges, flexibility, recognition for placement supervisors and high-quality interpreting. The recommendations are of relevance to other organisations engaged in development of professional degrees in Majority World countries. Future research would benefit from a critical investigation of the diverse perspectives of stakeholders involved in the development and implementation of international curricula.

Occupational justice health questionnaire: reflections on its application

ABSTRACT Introduction Occupational justice concept is defined as the equal access and participation in all occupations, including the resources required for participation and opportunities for social inclusion. Occupational justice not only remains conceptually ambiguous for occupational therapy practice but also lacks critical examination of its applicability to non-Western cultures. Objective This article describes the reflexive process exercised by the researchers during and after using the Occupational Justice Health Questionnaire (OJHQ) as an occupational therapy tool in a substance addiction rehabilitation setting in the Philippines. Method This qualitative study gathered transcriptions from field notes and focus group discussions of the authors. These transcriptions were characterized by the authors’ reflections on their experiences using the OJHQ on four distinct periods: 1) OJHQ translation, 2) pilot testing, 3) OJHQ-Filipino version administration, and 4) project conclusion. Data were analyzed through thematic analysis. Results Qualitative data revealed four themes: tool usefulness; administration guidelines; contextualized use of the tool; and nuances of occupational injustices in substance addiction and rehabilitation setting. Conclusion Findings expanded OJHQ’s purpose to enhance clinical reasoning, promote justice-oriented health care, activate reflective practice, and recognize the interweaving and evolving nature of injustices. This article offers an understanding of how reflections can facilitate cultural adaptation of practice tools used in occupational therapy and justice practice.

Growing a profession: Clinician perspectives on the evolving practice of speech-language pathology in Vietnam

Purpose: This paper reports findings from phase two of a multiphase cross-cultural research programme exploring the professional practice of a group of Vietnam's first university-qualified speech-language pathologists.Method: Employing qualitative research methodology, this study involved a series of workshops with seven Vietnamese speech-language pathologists in which visual research methods were used to explore the evolution of their work, the challenges they faced, and opportunities to progress their professional practice. Thematic analysis employing a mixed deductive-inductive approach was used to analyse the textual data.Result: Heightened awareness of the speech-language pathology profession in Vietnam, movement into specialisation and expansion of services into the private sector were described. Dual professional roles, limited access to culturally-relevant resources to support practice and lack of experience in advocating for services posed challenges, whilst community education, the conduct of research, and the training of others in speech-language pathology were progressing the profession.Conclusion: The professional practice of a group of Vietnam's first speech-language pathologists is growing. Opportunities to advance their practice will best be informed by knowledge that reflects local context and culture and includes the experiences and preferences of persons living with communication and swallowing disabilities in Vietnam and their families.