Editorial.

Since taking over the role of Editor last year I have listened to various opinions regarding the purpose of the New Zealand Journal of Occupational Therapy. It seems fitting as a new Editor to address that topic now. What is the role of our professional Journal? What content and professional standard is required?

The role of the New Zealand Journal of Occupational Therapy is to represent our professional identity at national and international levels. In that context, it is about whatever you feel is important enough to share with others, be you practising clinician, academic or adult learner. Looking back over publications from the last four years I found a wide variety of topics covering various fields of practice. Included were articles on paediatrics, special education, community rehabilitation, mental health, geriatrics, evidence based practice, cultural and social issues. This diversity of topics symbolises the purpose of the Journal. That is, to offer the most up to date information, from national and international sources, by sharing knowledge, experience and reflections on occupational therapy practice.

To achieve its goal of extending the knowledge of occupational therapists the Journal is dependent on those people who take the time to write about practice and contribute to the professional development of others. There are many topics of professional interest that are in keeping with the Journal's principle of being grounded in practice. For example, reflective practice, innovative practice, theory in practice, research projects, current trends or emerging trends. When the Journal was re-published in March 2002, Editor Dr Samson Tse advocated that the three principles in the nations founding document--the Treaty of Waitangi--should guide the future direction of the Journal. They are the principles of Partnership, Participation, and Protection. As Samson said at that time,

   there is a need for partnership among clinicians and
   members of the profession from academic and research
   fields. Partnership also extends across professional
   communities in New Zealand and overseas. To sustain
   the publication and quality of the Journal it is
   important to have full and active participation from
   individual members of the profession. To protect the
   credibility and advancement of occupational therapy
   as a profession in the new millennium, publication
   of good quality articles is a necessity not a luxury
   (p. 3).

The majority of articles published in the Journal come from academics in universities and post-graduate students. This is understandable if you keep in mind that lecturers are working towards creating an evidence base to inform their teaching. In addition, the New Zealand government identifies academics as having a responsibility to contribute to the knowledge base and has prioritized research involvement in tertiary sector funding. Thus the profession's need to generate knowledge to inform practice is supported at governmental level. To ensure the knowledge provided to students and therapists is of good quality, articles published in the New Zealand Journal of Occupational Therapy and other professional journals are peer reviewed. This means they are evaluated by experts in the field before being accepted for publication. Added to that, various organisations, including New Zealand's Ministry of Education, publish a list of journals endorsed as being of high scientific standard. The New Zealand Journal of Occupational Therapy appears on the Ministry of Education's annual list, thus acknowledging its quality.

Given the small number of the articles authored by practising clinicians, some occupational therapists have voiced concern that only the views of academics are represented. As a practicing therapist I am aware that practice-based knowledge is shared on a daily basis with clients and colleagues, but as the editor of NZJOT I also know that very few therapists take the time or make the effort to share their clinically applied knowledge through publication. The Journal becomes what you make it and content is dictated by what arrives on the Editor's desk. If you are not getting what you want, I invite you to do something about it. Write about your work, your experiences and your views. Write about occupational therapy practice in New Zealand, our culture, our values and our perspectives. Only then can we hope to achieve a balance between practice and academia.

It is important to also remember that the Journal is distributed internationally and thereby reflects the unique aspects of occupational therapy practice in New Zealand to therapists in other countries. To ensure our professional image is correctly represented overseas the journal is dedicated to the publication of high quality articles. To achieve this aim the editorial committee offers practical assistance to New Zealand therapists embarking on writing for publication. This assistance can include guidance about how to write-up an article and shape it to meet the established criteria. Contact me directly to access this service.

Just as time never stands still, likewise time changes most things. As you will see from the listing, time has brought changes to the editorial committee. Two long standing members of the committee, Tricia McGuinness and Wendy Jones have resigned due to other demands on their time. The remaining members and I will work together as a team moving the Journal forward and into a new era.

In this edition of the New Zealand Journal of Occupational Therapy, Kirk Reed reflects on the influences that have given shape to the provision of mental health services in New Zealand. Marianne van der Haas and Claire Horwood write about the findings of a pilot study they undertook to evaluate the effectiveness of a community based occupational therapy service. Authors from the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque share the findings of a research project undertaken to explore the connection between specific visual perceptual deficits and the ability of children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy to function at school. This edition includes more New Zealand Practice Foundations from the NZAOT archives. Beth Gordon has given us several interesting snippets, and as you read these writings from the past, note their relevance to the present. I do hope you will enjoy Evidence-based parallels: 1948-1960.

Lastly I am pleased to introduce a guest editor for the final article in this edition. Well known to many of you, Rowena Scaletti has a long association with the New Zealand Journal of Occupational Therapy and we are privileged to have her input.

I am very grateful for the support I have received from occupational therapists around New Zealand. To those of you who have submitted manuscripts--thank you. To those who have given your time to review manuscripts--thank you. Without your contribution there would not be a New Zealand Journal of Occupational Therapy.

Editor Grace O'Sullivan Acknowledgement