Initiative in Occupational Therapy
Vona’s original thinking is reflected in her paper “Initiative in Occupational Therapy” presented in 1962 at the University of Pretoria. This and five subsequent papers (published in the book available in Resources), are acknowledged as providing the philosophical, theoretical and practical constructs for the Vona du Toit Model of Creative Ability (VdTMOCA).
The conceptualisation of Creative Ability, as foundational constructs of the theory and practice of occupational therapy, was developed exponentially through du Toit’s own thinking and the clinical exploration and research done during the founding years by students, staff and student teachers enrolled for the Teachers Diploma in Occupational Therapy at the University of Pretoria.
The period 1965 till 1974 was particularly significant in terms of work further defining the concepts and principles. Vona designed a table she named the Occupational Therapy Creative Ability Programme (OTCAP), a guide to the occupational therapist in assessing and nurturing the patient’s/client’s will to participate in activity leading to work readiness. Inspired by Vona the Creative Participation Assessment (CPA) was developed by colleagues who were pivotal in its application from the early 1970’s. The VdTMoCA forms part of the curriculum for all training centers, and is gaining world wide recognition as an effective treatment modality.
The Intellectual Property resides with the University of Pretoria while the Foundation is custodian of the Model acting in a guardianship role to protect, endorse, promote and research.