About Us
The Association of Occupational Therapists of Ireland (AOTI) is the professional body serving, promoting and representing occupational therapists in the Republic of Ireland. We are the voice for the Occupational Therapy profession.
AOTI provides national leadership to its members and works on behalf of its members with the best interest of the profession and service users in mind. We are the organisation that promotes the profession on behalf of all occupational therapists in Ireland. We rely on the voluntary commitment and efforts of our members to achieve our objectives.
AOTI considers current practice in Ireland and abroad, working at both a strategic and operational level to advance the profession in Ireland, to ensure appropriate governance and optimise communication with the public and our members.
You can read a brief history of the early years of AOTI here.
What we do
The Association of Occupational Therapists of Ireland promotes the value of Occupational Therapy as a means of improving the occupational performance, health and wellbeing of the people of Ireland. We have a wide range of programme and activities to achieve this. These include:
- Being the official voice of the Occupational Therapy profession in Ireland and representing our members nationally and internationally
- Communicating regularly with our members and the public via our website, newsletter and social media
- Providing a wide range of continuing professional development (CPD) resources and learning opportunities for our members
- Running 16 Advisory Groups for members covering a wide range of Occupational Therapy practice areas
- Accrediting professional Occupational Therapy programmes in the Republic of Ireland and approving these on behalf of the World Federation of Occupational Therapists
- Producing professional practice guidelines for occupational therapists to support the highest standards of practice among our members
- Publishing the Irish Journal of Occupational Therapy and supporting Irish Occupational Therapy research
- Participating in health service and Government consultations on behalf of the Occupational Therapy profession
- Shaping health policy and service delivery through advocacy and professional representation
- Providing information for the public including a listing of private practice occupational therapists
Our people
AOTI has a number of key structures in order to carry out its functions including a Board of Directors, a Management Team, Staff, Sub-Committees, Advisory Groups and Delegates/Reps.
Board of Directors
The Board of Directors are the governors of AOTI and have legal accountability and responsibility for the Association.
The members of the Board of Directors are:
- Patricia Regan - Chairperson
- Anne Hughes Kazibwe
- Phil Dunne
- Mary McGrath
- Máire O'Leary
- Emre Dogan
- Genevieve O'Halloran
- Joanne Fallon
- Maria Gomes
The Board of Directors has responsibility for the following areas of the Association: organisational purpose and strategy; Board membership and organisational governance; compliance and reporting; finance; employment; policy; complaints; and awards. The Board of Director's Governance Handbook can be read here.
Management Team
The AOTI Board of Directors delegate responsibility for the day-to-day running of the Association to the Management Team. This Team is comprised of up to 15 AOTI members appointed by the Board and is led by Odhrán Allen, AOTI Chief Executive Officer. Occasionally additional members may be co-opted onto the Management Team as the need arises. Service on the Management Team is on a voluntary basis for AOTI members. The current members of AOTI Management Team are:
- Joan Elliott
- Rachel Dunne
- Andreya Ellis
- Mairead Dempsey
- Norma Foley
- Angela Jackson
- Denise Dockery
- Brian Condon
- Aoife Barry
- Victoria King
- Ros Noel
- Kinza Tabassum
- Melanie Anderson
- Nicola Costigan
The terms of reference of the Management Team can be read here.
Staff
| Odhrán Allen | Orla Foster | Grainne Wall | Veronica McKenna |
AOTI currently has four staff:
- Odhrán Allen - Chief Executive Officer ceo@aoti.ie
- Veronica McKenna - Membership Secretary info@aoti.ie
- Orla Foster - Director of Professional Development cpd@aoti.ie
- Gráinne Wall - CPD Administrator cpdadmin@aoti.ie
Our staff assist the Board of Directors, Management Team, Committees, Advisory Groups, delegates/representatives and members in achieving the objectives of the Association and managing day-to-day operations. The positions of Chief Executive Officer and Membership Secretary are funded primarily through membership subscriptions and the Director of Professional Development and CPD Administrator roles are primarily funded through an annual grant from the HSE.
Honorary and Life Members
The categories of Honorary Membership and Life Membership are awards bestowed on a select group of people by AOTI. Those receiving the awards have demonstrated an outstanding contribution to AOTI or the profession of Occupational Therapy in the opinion of Board of Directors.
AOTI currently has five Life Members:
- Mary Barrett
- Philomena Dunne
- Helen McGuigan
- Maria McGuinn
- Roisin Nolan
