Supporting the occupational participation of frontline workers following workplace trauma (May 20, 2025)

Presented by: Colin Chan, OT Reg. (Ont.) and Adam Broad, OT Reg. (Ont.)

Exposure to traumatic events within the workplace is highly prevalent among workers in public safety, healthcare, transportation, retail, and other public-facing careers, leading many to take work leave in order to heal (Van Eerd et al., 2021). Occupational therapists play a vital part in supporting such workers in returning to work and making other highly meaningful occupational gains following workplace trauma. This webinar will explore the prevalence of workplace trauma among frontline workers, and the symptoms and profound occupational effects of such trauma within their personal and professional lives. It will also cover the institutional landscape in Canada for supporting traumatized workers in regaining occupational function. Finally, the webinar will present 1-2 case studies exemplifying how community-based OT interventions support workers in making significant occupational performance gains across multiple domains.

After taking part in this webinar, participants will be able to: 

1. Understand the context within which occupational performance engagement can be disrupted among frontline workers
2. Understand the institutional framework through which work-related trauma and operational stress are managed across Canada
3. Understand a treatment framework to support clients in addressing their occupational performance issues
4. Identify new or different tools to support their clients with managing their occupational performance issues and returning to meaningful activity and work

Level  Intermediate (3-5 years of experience in this specific practice area)