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Jenny Leow, MSc Occupational Therapy
Jenny was ready for a career change that would help her achieve her aspirations, as well as one that matched her personal and professional attributesTransferable skills
Having always enjoyed working with people, Jenny had considered a career in healthcare after finishing her first degree, and, after some deliberation, she felt like this was a path she would like to revisit. “I also felt that I had a number of skills from audio producing that would be transferable to healthcare,” she explains. “In particular the ability to grade activities to suit different people, and my experience in helping individuals to achieve the best outcome for themselves.”
Finding out more
A number of Jenny’s friends and occupational therapists by profession, thought the role would suit Jenny’s personality and recommended she looked into it in more detail. “To find out more, I shadowed various occupational therapists in different settings from a school for children with learning disabilities to a stroke unit and found the analytical qualities in the role appealing,” recalls Jenny. “I also felt that the opportunity to collaborate with service users in practical problem solving and enable their independence would be very rewarding.”
Diverse placements
Jenny is currently just over halfway through her second placement in an acute hospital setting specialising in oncology and haematology. This placement is a stark contrast to her first placement which was in an inpatient forensic mental health ward, but she can see the value in both. “In both placements I have developed my skills across the whole of the occupational therapy process - from assessment to evaluation. I’ve observed the different, yet essentially similar ways occupational therapists work in different settings. I’ve very much enjoyed both placements and hope to have a placement in a school for children with learning disabilities or in the community next year.”
Jenny is also volunteering in her spare time for social enterprise Family Mosaic – she’s just received her first case and is soon to begin working with the service user.