27/08/2025
I was absolutely thrilled to receive the final project placement report completed by final year Occupational Therapy students Emma Clark, Ruby Conti and Hua Bai from La Trobe University.
These remarkable students completed a 10-week placement supervised by me, where they explored all things “connecting” by researching ways to reach potentially disconnected community members in Geelong’s North through Pear Tree Connect 🍐 🌳 🔗. This involved analysing population data and demographics, published research, conducting comprehensive literature reviews, interviewing key stakeholders, and applying their findings to guide ways foward.
Their report highlights that Occupational Therapist-led social prescribing programs are well-placed to support ‘connecting’ to people, place, purpose, planet, and the deeply personal, especially for disconnected Men.
This is a first in the field of occupational therapy, and we will be working together to share the findings more broadly, including a planned research journal article publication. Exciting times ahead!
As a solo private practitioner, I could never have dedicated 688 hours to this project without the Students’ support. Expanding the Pear Tree Connect program that I run, and now anchoring it in an evidence base, feels like such an incredible achievement.
Dr Rob 😊 🍐 🌳
