In this one hour episode of the OT Potential podcast, you will be introduced to the Kawa model and how it can be used to foster collaboration for a rehab team.

The Kawa Model uses the metaphor of a river to depict one’s life journey. In this mental model, occupational therapists enable, restore, and/or maximize their client’s life flow.

The model can be used with individual clients and groups. And, we’ll begin our episode by looking at research that explores how an acute care therapy team used the model to openly discuss and problem solve their team flow.

We are incredibly honored to welcome on Dr. Michael Iwama, PhD, MSc, BScOT, a co-creator of the Kawa Model. Dr. Iwama will deepen our understanding of the Kawa Model, and we’ll discuss how the model and the specific research we are looking at can inspire your OT practice.

Learning Objectives

You will be able to identify the 5 interrelated constructs of the Kawa Model.
You will be able to recognize the flexibility of the theory and how it can be utilized to foster team collaboration.

Agenda

Intro
Breakdown and analysis of journal article
- Why team collaboration is important in acute care.
- What do we know about fostering effective team collaboration?
- The Kawa Model and fostering team collaboration
- What was the purpose of this article?
- Who were the participants?
- How was the team-building intervention structured?
- How was the effectiveness measured?
- What were the results?
- What did the authors conclude?
- Takeaways for OT practitioners
Discussion on practical implications for OTs (with guest Dr. Michael Iwama)
1. Can you tell us the story of how you first found OT?
2. Can you tell us the story of how the Kawa Model was first developed?
3. I’d love to hear your two-minute description of the Kawa Model.
4. I have a couple quick questions about the model, before we look at our research article:
  - The two contributing factors I had to pause the longest on were driftwood and spaces, can you describe them to me in your own words?
  - In the model, there doesn’t seem to be an explicitly set component of OT- is that correct? Can you speak to that?
5. Turning to the research article, what were your initial impressions of reading this article?
6. What do you think are some of the strengths of the Kawa in team building?
7. One of the biggest barriers I thought of to replicating a program like this was having a facilitator who has the time to run the team building program and also the confidence in utilizing Kawa in this way. What do you think is the threshold of familiarity with the model that someone would need to utilize it with teams?
8. For people who would like to dig deeper into the Kawa Model and its application to their practice, how would you recommend they get started?

Supporting Research

Primary

Cultivating Acute Care Rehabilitation Team Collaboration using the kawa model

Additional

Contact Hours (CEUs/PDUs)

1 Contact Hour. Released online from Aurora, NE.

This course was designed to meet your continuing education requirements

We designed our courses to meet the requirements for “online” and “independent/self-study” courses. To verify the requirements from your specific state (within the U.S.), check out OT Continuing Education Requirements. If you are outside of the United States and don't see requirements for your specific location on that page, please contact us.

OT Potential courses are presented as live webinars, then released on-demand video and audio via the OT Potential Podcast. Attendance in the live webinar will be indicated on your certificate. Learn more about how our courses help meet live webinar requirements, and OT CEU requirements overall.

We are proud to be an AOTA Approved Provider and to meet the requirements for your NBCOT renewal.

AOTA Approved Provider Badge with Course Details

AOTA Details

AOTA Course ID#: 03950
AOTA CEUs Earned: 0.1
AOTA Delivery Format: Distance Learning-Independent
AOTA Category: Foundational Knowledge
AOTA Level: Introductory

NBCOT Details

NBCOT PDUs Earned: 1.25

Instructional Methods, Registration, Special Needs Requests, Cancellation Policy

This course is an independent/self-study course delivered via podcast on one or more of the following platforms: YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, & Google Play.

If you need accommodations to take this course, please contact us and we will address your needs on an individual basis.

If we cancel a promoted course, event, live stream, or any other paid CEU offering prior to release, and you subscribe explicitly for said offering, you are eligible for a full refund if you did not complete and earn any other CEU quizzes or certificates during your subscription.

If a live webinar is cancelled that you signed up for, our system will automatically generate an email to you and if possible, we will inform you of the rescheduled date. Our most current webinar schedule will be found here.

Audience / Education Level & Course Completion Requirements

Our target audience is therapy professionals who are looking to learn more about this topic. The educational level is introductory. In order to receive a certificate for this course, you must first participate in the podcast/webinar in its entirety. Then, you will need to take the quiz that will accompany the course and earn 75% or higher. If you pass, a PDF certificate will be made available to you via email and download. Quizzes for live (distance learning–interactive) webinars must be completed within 3 days of completing the webinar.

Disclosures

It is the policy of OT Potential to disclose any financial and non-financial interest the provider or instructor may have in a product or service mentioned during an activity. This is to ensure that the audience is made aware of any bias of the speaker.

OT Potential pays guest speakers an honorarium for their participation, either directly or to an institution of the speaker's choosing at their request. We invite guests whose expertise often comes from practices, programs, or building products in their field. Where a speaker has a financial interest in the subject of a course, we disclose it below so you can weigh it for yourself.

OT Potential's interest in this topic: We have no financial stake in the Kawa Model.

Speaker interests: Michael Iwama is a co-creator of the Kawa Model, the subject of this course. He has invested significant time and energy in the model and may on occasion financially benefit from its promotion, though resources for the model are offered free of charge and are intended to be as accessible as possible.

Speakers

Michael Iwama

PhD, MSc, BScOT

Dr. Iwama currently serves as an occupational therapy professor at Duke University School of Medicine. He is widely recognized for having developed the “Kawa Model” (‘Kawa’ is Japanese for ‘River’), the first substantial model of practice in the rehabilitation sciences developed outside the English-speaking world. The Kawa Model is now taught in over 600 health professions education programs internationally and used in practice across six continents. He has emerged as a very important and progressive thinker in the fields of occupational therapy and rehabilitation sciences worldwide. Dr. Iwama draws on his rich experience of acculturating into Eastern and Western social spheres of experience to drive his profound and critical perspectives on culture and its intersections with theory and practice in the rehabilitation sciences. Most recently, Dr. Iwama was the Dean of the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, and Professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy, at MGH Institute of Health Professions. A passionate and captivating communicator, Dr, Iwama regularly is invited to lecture to both U.S. and international audiences. Since his book, The Kawa Model: Culturally Relevant Occupational Therapy, was published in 2006, he has given over 350 invited national and international lectures and over 40 keynote and plenary addresses at scientific and professional conferences. He has more than 25 publications in both English and Japanese professional journals. Dr. Iwama is an adjunct professor in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto and holds similar adjunct professorial appointments at six universities in Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Asia. Prior to arriving at the MGH Institute, he was professor and chair of the Department of Occupational Therapy at Augusta University, formerly the Medical College of Georgia. Dr. Iwama completed advanced studies in Medical Anthropology from University of Leiden, Netherlands, and has earned a PhD in Sociology from Kibi International University in Japan, a MSc in Rehabilitation Sciences from University of British Columbia, a BSc in Occupational Therapy from University of British Columbia, and a BSc in Human Performance from the University of Victoria.

Sarah Lyon

OTR/L

Sarah Lyon, OTR/L, is the CEO of OT Potential. Sarah earned her BA from St. Olaf College and her master’s degree in occupational therapy from New York University. Her diverse clinical background spans multiple settings, including critical access, acute trauma, and state inpatient psychiatric hospitals. In 2011, she founded OT Potential to fulfill the industry's need for reliable, high-quality occupational therapy resources and continuing education.

As a recognized content creator, Sarah has collaborated with top healthcare brands like VeryWell Health, WebPT, and MedBridge. She blends her clinical expertise with a talent for creating clear, action-oriented content that empowers practitioners to excel. Passionate about elevating the OT profession, she has been featured on numerous industry podcasts. Sarah ultimately returned to her roots, running OT Potential and raising her family in her hometown of Aurora, Nebraska.