This opinion piece describes central issues arising from discussions at a recent conference exploring the implications of global poverty for the occupational therapy profession. The connection between poverty, disability and the marginalisation that these problems produce presents an opportunity for occupational therapists to realise their potential for facilitating social change. To do so, however, entails some reconceptualising of the profession. In some areas of intervention, the struggle to obtain a clear definition for occupational therapy has both arisen from and contributed to a marginal status, linked to difficulties in developing capacity for research. The social questions around occupation suggest both challenges and opportunities for the profession.
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