Saudi OT Club

History of OT in Saudi Arabia:

"The history of Occupational Therapy in Saudi Arabia is relatively a young one and can be estimated to be approximately 25-years old. Some organization offered a Diploma Programme in Occupational Therapy that graduated Saudi Occupational Therapy assistants for a couple of years. There are Occupational Therapists working in special needs schools and in major hospitals around the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Still, access to Occupational Therapy was limited to a small scale of the population. 

Since then, Occupational Therapy is slowly developing and expanding its horizons in Saudi Arabia as more health services realize its vital role in promoting patients' independence and in adapting their home environment to maximize performance in daily activities. The Ministry of Health as well as some of the major hospitals are offering scholarships to study Occupational Therapy abroad. There is also a future plan to start an Occupational Therapy College within the King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences.

However, there is still no recognized association for Occupational Therapy that can formulate a framework for Occupational Therapists working in Saudi Arabia. Therefore, the aim of creating the SAOT club is to promote high standards of practice within the profession, promote continuing professional development and promote Occupational Therapy to other health professionals both as a concept and in practice.” 

If you would like more information about OT in Saudi Arabia, go to http://www.saotclub.org/

  

(If anyone has any information related to the development of OT in the M.E., it would be my pleasure to share it on this blog).