Internships at POTS by POTS Malta

Unit 9. Internships at POTS Les stages pratiques à POTS

From Planet Campus

Objective -

To understand what the Erasmus program is To carry out an internship at POTS

Tasks -

Making contacts for Erasmus internship Assessing one’s internship

Erasmus+ Program

Read through the information below on the Erasmus Exchange program and summarize the most important information dealt with. Do either individually or in groups, and give an oral account before the class. This is a free class-discussion exercise. Then turn on to Part II for exercises on the Internships at POTS. The Erasmus Exchange program offers students the opportunity to live abroad and experience a foreign culture, meet new people and learn or improve a foreign language a foreign language. It also opens the ways for you to enrich the period of your studies and have better chances while looking for a job in the future If you benefit from this program, you will be able to share your ideas and maybe even to create good working or cultures basis with other students from all around the world. Carrying out an internship abroad makes you learn how to be co-operative at work and appreciate working with others. What is Erasmus? The Erasmus+ Programme is a European funding programme established in 1987 offering university students a possibility of studying or doing an internship abroad in another country for a period of at least 2 months and maximum 12 months per cycle of studies. Erasmus+ now offers the possibility to go way beyond the European borders as well. Who can Benefit from the Program? Higher education students from after completing a 1st year of studies can benefit of the Erasmus+ studies and Erasmus+ placement programmes. There is no age limitation. What about the Money? Each student receives a grant which partly covers the costs of the stay abroad. Grants differ from sending and host countries. The grant can often be complemented by regional or national grants. You should be aware that in most cases, the Erasmus+ grant alone will not cover all your life expenses. And the Courses? One of the basic rights each exchange student has is the full recognition of courses passed successfully abroad by the home university (institution, school), if the program is intended to be academic. Before leaving the home university, the participating student signs the Learning Agreement – a document that describes the program of studies followed in the host institution. At the end of the stay the host facility should prepare for the student a document called Transcript of Records which confirms the completed studies' program and the results. These documents are legally binding for all parties involved (your home and host university). Sorry! Could you Say that Again? Academic institutions very often offer language course for international students. From 2015, all Erasmus+ students can register on the Erasmus+Online Linguistic Support website and to take online language courses.

Preparation? If one tip is to be given, don’t waste time, start planning your Erasmus+ stay at least 6 months in advance! Where to find more information? More detailed information on ERASMUS+ is available at the European Commission's website. For information how to apply, deadlines, etc., contact the International Relations Office of your university (school). You also can find more details and learn more about projects that you can benefit from, from your National Agency's website.

Finally, you can contact your local Erasmus Student Network section. Information taken from: Erasmus Student Network (ESN), a non-profit international student organization, whose mission is to represent international students, thus providing opportunities for cultural understanding and self-development under the principle of Students Helping Students.

II.

Internships at POTS

POTS Mission Statement POTS, Paediatric Occupational Therapy Services, is a private practice OT facility in Malta, which is now offering speech and language pathology service. Occupational Therapy at POTS provides a service that addresses the individual needs of the child that is experiencing difficulty in sensory processing. Methods, strategies and different programs are developed for the child using evidence-based practice, creativity and innovation. Time and support to parents are considered important during the OT process. Occupational Therapy at POTS is provided through direct (individual or group) intervention or indirect through consultation. This OT intervention is provided to children by dedicated staff within a fun environment. Our main aim is to address difficulties in sensory processing and developmental skills that are required in daily life in order to help each child become more independent and successful in life. POTS serves the following neurodevelopmental conditions: -

Sensory Processing Disorder Autism and related difficulties Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) Developmental delays Learning disabilities (including dyspraxia)

Answer the following question orally, in English. What’s POTS main mission? After that, express your answer in French.

EXERCISES Writing an Enquiry Mail. Observe how the enquiry mail is written (left indications), read it in full and work out the vocabulary exercise below. De : Marie-Pierre Vanel [mailto:marie-pierre.vanel@ergo-nancy.com] Envoyé : Tuesday, October 17, 2017 9:03 AM À : Josette Sammut RE : Erasmus exchange Start: Greeting

Dear Mrs. Sammut,

Reference: Introducing oneself

I’m Marie-Pierre Vanel, course instructor and in charge of Erasmus Exchange Program at the at the School of Occupational Therapy (IFE) in Nancy, France.

Reason for writiting

I’m writing to ask you if you could kindly accommodate our students, Océane Fasseler and Laurie Haffer, on practical training in the framework of Erasmus program.

Giving further information: making a request and promising action

Closing remark: reference to future collaboration Finish: Greeting

I’d be grateful if you could take them on as of the beginning of June and up until 13 July 2018, taking into account their return to France by 13 July 2018 for pedagogical programming reasons. Bearing this in mind, I’ll send you soon the Learning Agreement, knowing that in France, internships must include at least 280 working hours so as to acquire 8 ECTS corresponding to a clinical internship. I’m looking forward to a future collaboration, and perhaps meeting you in Malta. Best Regards, Marie-Pierre Vanel Référente pédagogique, responsable des 1ères années Responsable formation continue

Name (and position)

Institut de Formation en Ergothérapie Lorraine-Champagne-Ardenne 4, rue des sables 54000 NANCY Tél bureau : 0383222463 Marie-Pierre Vanel [mailto:marie-pierre.vanel@ergo-nancy.com]

Contact details

Give the English equivalent to the following standard expressions taken from the mail above. The expressions are given in the alphabetical order.

Accueillir

_____________________________

Contrat / Convention pédagogique

_____________________________

Dans cette perspective

_____________________________

Dans l’attente de

_____________________________

Dans le cadre de

_____________________________

En prenant en compte

_____________________________

Formateur/-trice

_____________________________

Je vous serais reconnaissant/-e de bien vouloir les accepter

_____________________________ _____________________________

Meilleures / Chauleuses salutations

_____________________________

Stage clinique

_____________________________

Stage professionnel

_____________________________

Reply to the Enquiry Mail. Read the response to the precedent mail, and answer the questions below. De : Josette Sammut [mailto:info@potsmalta.com] Envoyé : Tuesday 17 October 2017 14:54 PM À : Marie-Pierre Vanel Objet : Re: Erasmus exchange Dear Ms Vanel, Thank you for your email. I do not find any objection for the students to carry out their placement at the Pediatric Occupational Therapy Services (POTS), which is a private occupational therapy facility. The dates you are mentioning here make up to 8 weeks, but would you be able to send them for 12 weeks instead? We have been hosting foreign and local students for the past 5 years (all year round) and we often find that the first 3 weeks serve as an orientation to the kids’ conditions and to our organization/system, and then the students would be able to put things to practice during the rest of the weeks, hence making it 12 weeks is highly beneficial for them and also for our clients (kids) so that we don't change the student/s too often (since a lot of our kids are on the autism spectrum) and I will be assigning them to a number of kids (each student will have a roaster so that they will follow the same kids from week to week to monitor progress and learn how to implement strategies – our kids follow weekly therapy sessions for 8 weeks, 12 weeks or 20 weeks - according to their needs). When I communicated with the students (Océane and Laurie) we mentioned May till August - would this be possible? You are mentioning the pedagogical programming – so does this mean that they can't stay till August? Or is it something they can do online? Maybe during the placement period? I can offer them 25 hours or 30 hours or 40 hours per week – for each student – , so if they need to work on a University project/hours, I can for example give them both 30 hours each so that they can use the rest of the week to work on school project/s/hours. Let me know and I can plan the hours for the students from our end, 280 hours are not an issue for us as we have a very busy clinic. Will hear from you, Kind regards. Josette Sammut BSc (Hons) MEd (Autism) Senior Paediatric Occupational Therapist P.O.T.S. (Paediatric Occupational Therapy Services)

Answer the following questions on the mail above.

What have POTS been doing for the past 5 years? ________________________________________________________________________________

What does the period of 3 weeks correspond to? ________________________________________________________________________________

What would the students be able to do during the weeks that remain of their Erasmus Program? ________________________________________________________________________________

Why is a period of 12-week traineeship recommended? ________________________________________________________________________________

Why can’t the students stay on training until August? (You can also refer to the precedent mail). ________________________________________________________________________________

Why is the host institution offering the students a 30-hour working week? ________________________________________________________________________________

Read the mails below and work out the different questions. De : Marie-Pierre Vanel [mailto:marie-pierre.vanel@ergo-nancy.com] Envoyé : Monday, October 23, 2017 8:25 AM À : Josette Sammut Objet : Re: Erasmus exchange Start: Greeting Reference to precedent mail and reason for writing

(1) ____________________, Thank you for your (2) ___________________. We have discussed things again with Océane and Laurie about the following (3) ____________________: Exam period by 2 May 2018 for students Summer holidays at our institution on 23 July 2018

Giving further details

Making a request

Finish : Greeting

Due to this, the (4) ____________________ cannot be (5) _________ after these dates, and we will not be able to legally cover our students in case of accidents and/or (6) work hazards. Therefore, Océane and Laurie may go for (7) __________ at your (8) __________ from May 7 to July 20 as a (9) __________, which is a period corresponding to an 11-week (10) __________. I’d be (11) __________ if you could take these (12) __________ constraints into account as they are (13) ____________________. (14) ____________________, Marie

Fill in the blanks with the missing information. Choose from the ones given below and translate. The first one has been done for you.

Best Regards

1) _____________________________________________

beyond our control

2) _____________________________________________

deadline

3) _____________________________________________

Dear Colleague

4) _____________________________________________

Framework

5) _____________________________________________

Grateful

6) _____________________________________________

institution

7) _____________________________________________

internship

8) _____________________________________________

met

9) _____________________________________________

pedagogical requirements

10) _____________________________________________

placement

11) _____________________________________________

prompt answer

12) _____________________________________________

m. regulatory obligations

13) Meilleures salutations / Cordialement

14) _____________________________________________

work hazards

De : Josette Sammut [mailto:info@potsmalta.com] Envoyé : Monday 23 October 2017 08:39 AM À : Marie-Pierre Vanel Objet : Re: Erasmus exchange Dear Marie, Thank you for your email and explanation. 11 weeks is perfect. But would they be working 25 hours per week (280 hours over 11 weeks) - each? or 40 hours per week? {I am asking so that I can plan hours for other students/staff}. I am booking both students on my planner for the dates you mentioned in your email, and I will be sending both students some info about our service, conditions of children as well as directions to get to our venue closer to date. I would like to receive the marking sheet/the students' goals before the placement starts so that I can plan their schedule with the goals in mind. If there is any documentation that I should fill in for you, let me know. I look forward to host both students. Kind regards, Josette

Translate the above mail into French.

___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________

De : Marie-Pierre Vanel [mailto:marie-pierre.vanel@ergo-nancy.com] Envoyé : Monday 23 October 2017 11:39 AM À : Josette Sammut Objet : RE: Erasmus exchange Chère Josette, Merci pour votre diligence. Je pense que 25 heures par semaine serait une bonne chose. Par ailleurs, veuillez trouver ci-joint les documents à compléter. Lorsque cela est fait, je les transmets aux étudiantes pour signature. Je leur demanderai également de préparer leurs objectifs de stage. Pour information, le premier document n’est pas exigé mais vous pouvez le remplir si vous souhaitez envoyer vos étudiants / collaborateurs en France. Bien à vous, Marie

Translate the above mail into English.

On Monday, March 5, 2018 12:49 PM, Océane Fasseler <oce@hotmail.fr> wrote: Hello ! We contact you to inform you that we have already booked our flights and accommodation. We look forward to come and live on this island. We have to bring some particular things with us? For example our blouses to work or something? Thank you very much, have a nice day. See you soon, Océane and Laurie

Correct whatever is wrong in the mail above, and therefore re-write it and reorganize its elements.

De : Josette Sammut [mailto:info@potsmalta.com] Envoyé : Monday 5 March 2018 13:00 À : Marie-Pierre Vanel Cc : Océane Fasseler, Laurie Haffer Objet : Re: Erasmus Dear Océane and Laurie, I thank you for your email and confirmation of your flights. You sound promising already, and with your motivation and dedication I am sure that you will be having a positive learning experience. Therefore, I welcome you to POTS and promise you that you will be supported from your first day till the very end. You will always be with qualified Occupational Therapists and I will be working on your timetable – which will include the list of children/name of therapist that you will be with. You will also start your placement with an orientation meeting which will be helping you to familiarize yourself with the conditions of children, programmes that we offer, our system etc. You will be receiving an email with an appointment for the orientation meeting closer to date. I will also be sending you directions to get to our venue. Re: Dress code during your placement: - you need to be wearing decent clothing: sleeveless tops, short tops (showing tummy area), tops that show cleavage, shorts and skirts are not allowed. Tight sports clothes and 'torn' fashion wear are not allowed. - code: casual smart - weather: May-July is usually quite warm in Malta; however we have air-conditioned rooms and hence decent clothing should still be worn at all times - no excessive piercing showing - no tattoos showing Recommended reading: You need to familiarize yourself with Sensory Integration terms: Sensory processing, sensory integration, praxis, sequencing, motor planning and execution, postural control, bilateral motor coordination, spatial judgement, modulation/regulation, vestibular sense, proprioception sense and tactile sense (as well as the other senses) (you don't have to go in great detail), Conditions: Autism, ADHD, Dyspraxia, Dyslexia / learning difficulties, Down Syndrome, Epilepsy Hope this helped you, Kind regards, Josette Sammut BSc (Hons) MEd (Autism) Senior Paediatric Occupational Therapist P.O.T.S. (Paediatric Occupational Therapy Services)

Answer the following questions on the mail above. Free answers. a.

List the cloth items and body art that the trainees should not wear and say why? ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________

What dress code is allowed at work? (Not clearly listed. Make up the answer by paraphrasing, very briefly, what is said in the mail). ____________________________________________________________________________

The internship coordinator recommends that the trainees be familiar with some terms linked to autism, which are the following. Give their French equivalents. Sensory Integration: sensory processing, sensory integration, praxis, sequencing, motor planning and execution, postural control, bilateral motor coordination, spatial judgement, modulation/regulation, vestibular sense, proprioception sense and tactile sense; Conditions: Autism, ADHD, Dyspraxia, Dyslexia / learning difficulties, Down Syndrome, Epilepsy ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________

Read through the text below and answer the corresponding questions. Testimony of traineeship at POTS

My name is Océane. I’m a French occupational therapy student. I carried out an internship at POTS, i.e., Paediatric Occupational Therapy Services for neurodevelopmental conditions, from 7 May to 20 July 2018. It was at the end of my 2nd year, so in fact this corresponds to the 3rd year of study in Malta. It was also my first experience in the Paediatric, private sector. 5

This 11-week placement was very enriching on personal and professional levels. It allowed me to strengthen my knowledge, but also my practice, along with the discovery a new country and a new culture. Not to mention that I had the opportunity to always practice my English, and for that I’m grateful to all the staff and clients who were understanding and could bear with my accent or vocabulary; and thanks to that, I improved my English a lot. Furthermore, whoever may be coming to POTS, even if your English isn’t perfect – well, you should have a certain level, otherwise it will be complicated to exchange with clients and therapists – don’t worry, children may always have a good laugh at you ... but you will improve very fast ☺ I also learned a lot of things in the paediatric area. I think that in this area you’re never done with learning new things: there are so much knowledge to get that a lifetime won’t be enough. But thanks to the therapists, their great skills, kindness and patience, I could learn so much from them, and now I’m on my way to graduation with strong achievements in this specialty. During this placement, I also discovered the pediatric care relationship. It’s so intense and rewarding to have the trust of a child and his parents, to be able to make them interested in, and comply with, the care. You’ve got so much to learn from kids and from this special kind of relationship that you always have to be inventive, clever, understanding, organized, caring, and sometimes, well, also firm. You’ll be impressed how fast a child can make progress, but also how frustrated you can be when you have to cope with moods and issues. But all this made me feel that I was getting better and better and have a hind sight on things in order to enhance my future practice.

I felt more than welcome in the staff. They know when they can trust you to do things on your own and guide you in your practice to improve yourself as much as you wish. In addition, in POTS, you don’t have just one supervisor, which makes you enhance what you do from different points of view, and proves to be very beneficial. Not to mention that I didn’t know anything about Malta: everyone shared their tips and plans with me, which I appreciated a lot. It was both an exchange of knowledge and personal experiences in terms of cultural sharing as well as occupational therapy practice.

If I had to say something that’s “not good” about the placement, it would be about public commuting. The buses were the only “negative thing” I had to cope with. You have to be very organized and patient. Also, don’t forget to order your “tallinja card” before coming to Malta, because it takes time to get it. Once again, thanks to everyone, I will keep in mind this training experience for a long time as it was the most amazing that I could have ever imagined.

(5777 words. This information is not required. It’s just mentioned as an indication of how long this kind of work might be, i.e. 500 to 600 words)

(Malta, 11.07.2018) Comprehension Questions 1. Where did Océane carry out her internship? (Country and facility). ___________________________________________________________________________________ 2.

What is the specialty of the facility in which the trainee did her placement? ___________________________________________________________________________________

How was the internship satisfactory? ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________

What might be a hindrance? Why? ___________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________

What qualities one should have, to be able to care for children? ___________________________________________________________________________________

How is the staff particularly considerate and good-hearted? ___________________________________________________________________________________

What’s the point of having many supervisors at POTS? ___________________________________________________________________________________ 9.

Give a short, oral account (± 300 words; about 2 to 3 minutes of oral production) of a training period that you’ve carried out. Use the following prompts: Facility you did your training in (Medical) Situation chosen (presentation and justification) Remarks (Comments), questions, problems and proposed actions Assessment of knowledge and competencies you acquired and areas of improvement What the tutor thinks there is to improve in your professional posture (practice)

ANSWER KEY 1.

Give the English equivalent. a. b. c. d. e. f. g. h.

Accueillir Contrat / Convention pédagogique Dans cette perspective Dans l’attente de Dans le cadre de En prenant en compte Formateur/-trice Je vous serais reconnaissant/-e de bien vouloir les accepter

i. j. k.

Meilleures / Chauleuses salutations Stage clinique Stage professionnel

Answer the following questions. a. b. c. d.

e. f. 3.

Accommodate Learning Agreement Bearing this in mind I’m looking forward to In the framework of Taking into account Course instructor I’d be grateful if you could take them on Best Regards Clinical internship Practical training

What has POTS been doing for the past 5 years? Hosting, that is welcoming OT students. What does the period of 3 weeks correspond to? As an orientation period for pediatric patients and the institution itself. What do students do during the weeks that remain of their Erasmus Program? They can put their knowledge and observation into practice. Why is a period of 12-week traineeship recommended? So that the students and kids get used to each other, all the more that the students will be dealing with kids suffering from Autism Spectrum Disorder and that they will follow them all through their training to monitor their progress an learn how to implement therapy sessions. Why can’t the students stay on training until August? (You can also refer to the precedent mail). For pedagogical reasons at their home college. Why is the host institution offering the students a 30-hour working week? So that they can have time to work on their academic projects.

Fill in the blanks. a. b. c. d. e. f. g. h. i. j. k. l. m. n.

Best Regards beyond our control deadline Dear Colleague Framework Grateful institution internship met pedagogical requirements placement prompt answer regulatory obligations work hazarss

1) – d. Chère collègue 2) – l. Réponse rapide 3) – m. Obligations réglementaires 4) – j. Exigences pédagogiques 5) – i. Être conforme à / Répondre à 6) – n. accidents professionnels 7) – h Stage 8) – j. Structure / Institution 9) – c. Date limite 10) – k. Stage 11) – f. Reconnaissant(e) 12) – e. Cadre 13) – b. Indépendent de notre volonté 14) – a. Meilleures salutations / Cordialement

Translate into French.

Chère Marie, Je vous remercie pour votre mail et vos explications. 11 semaines me semblent parfait. Mais travaillent-elles 25 heures par semaine (280 heures sur 11 semaines) chacune ? (Je vous demande cela afin de pouvoir programmer d’autres heures pour les étudiants/staff). Je retiens les dates mentionnées pour les deux étudiantes afin que je puisse faire le planning, et j’enverrai à ces deux étudiantes des informations à propos de notre service, l’état de santé des enfants aussi bien que des indications pour venir dans notre institution à un moment qui se rapproche de la date de leur arrivée. J’aimerais recevoir la feuille de notation des étudiantes ainsi que leurs objectifs de stage avant le début de leur stage afin de pouvoir planifier leur emploi du temps. Veuillez me faire savoir s’il y des documentations que je dois remplir. Dans l’attente de recevoir vous étudiants, je vous transmets mes meilleures salutations. Josette 5.

Translate into English.

Dear Josette, Thank you for your diligence. I think that 25 hours per week is good. Furthermore, please find attached the documents to be completed. When you complete them, I’ll transmit them to the students for signature. I’ll also ask them to prepare their traineeship goals. Mind you, the first document is not required but you can complete it if you wish to send your students/colleagues to France. Best regards, Marie 6.

Correct whatever is wrong.

Hello, We’re writing to you / contacting you to inform you that we have already booked our flights and accommodation. However, we would like to ask you if we have to bring along anything special with us, like white coats for work or anything else. We look forward to come and join your teams / make the most of our training in your facilities. Thank in advance for your answer and have a nice day. Kind Regards, Océane and Laurie

Answer the questions. Free answers.

List the cloth items and body art that the trainees should not wear and say why? Sleeveless tops, short tops (showing tummy area), tops that show cleavage, shorts and skirts, tight sports clothes and 'torn' fashion wear, and excessive piercing and tattooing. This is probably so as not to to shock the young children or frighten them and also not to provoke any offensive comment maybe because of the “conservative” culture of the country!

What dress code is allowed at work? Casual smart.

The internship coordinator recommends that the trainees be familiar with some terms linked to autism, which are the following. Give their French equivalents. Let students work this question on their own and check.

Answer the corresponding questions. 1.

Where did Océane carry out her internship? (Country and facility). In Malta, at POTS. (ls. 1-3)

What is the specialty of the facility in which the trainee did her placement? Pediatric occupational therapy services mainly for neurodevelopmental conditions. (l.2)

How was the internship satisfactory? It was rewarding on personal and professional levels as it allowed her to strengthen her knowledge, and practice, discover a new country and culture, and to practice her English. (ls. 5-7)

What might be a hindrance? Why? Language. Though it doesn’t have to be perfect, yet you should have a certain level to be able to talk with children. (ls. 9-11)

What qualities one should have, to be able to care for children? Inventive, clever, understanding, organized, caring and firm. (l. 20)

How is the staff particularly considerate and good-hearted? They trust you and guide you in your (daily) practice. (ls. 24-25)

What’s the point of having many supervisors at POTS? So that your experience would be most varied, enriching and beneficial. (ls. 26-27).

Give a short account of any training period that you’ve carried out so far.

Example 1. Chloé writing: I did my training in a private practice nursing home for old and dependent people, in the Follow-up Care and Rehabilitation Service. I started off having difficulty imposing myself on a patient, who was very talkative and laughing all the time, which was distressful to me. Even though I had enough information about the patient, namely that she’s extremely talkative, I couldn’t pull her back into line with what I had to do for her. This made me doubt about myself, in that maybe this was linked to the fact that the person was much older than me and that therefore I owed her respect, that’s not to stop her form expressing herself, fearing that she might feel not listened to, and worse still, offended.

Therefore, my objective was to find a way to make the patient listen to me and let me care for her. Hence, I had to make sure I know how to care for her, and for how long I can listen to her and be able to do what I was up to, namely tests. In other words, it was all about adopting a professional posture or attitude of an experimented healthcare professional. Now, according to my tutor, I all the same showed interest in OT care for old people in the service, and that I was trying to act according to, and along with, what the different team members were supposed to do. She said that I was first and foremost collecting information about a given patient, before any intervention, which was important and necessary to do beforehand. She also said that I was correctly and practically implementing what I had theoretically learned so that I could well establish a care relationship with the patient. (291 words) Example 2. Marylène writing: I carried out my training in a rehabilitation and physical medicine facility, in Lay-Saint-Christophe in the Lorraine region, that takes on patients suffering from neurological disorders. There, I discovered pathologies that were new to me, like spinal cord injuries, hemiplegia resulting from strokes, traumatic brain injuries, and neurodegenerative diseases like multiple sclerosis as well as parkinsonian syndromes. It was a second-year placement which lasted 8 weeks. First and foremost, during the first week, I had to get used to the way the service runs before my tutor would let me carry out some tasks on my own. In this sense, she asked me to follow up a patient suffering from traumatic brain injury that gave rise to some cognitive disorders. So, to begin with, I did some assessments with the patient in order to get around to know his deficiencies and capacities. Subsequently, I sketched out an occupational plan of intervention so that I’d start off the rehabilitation sessions. We also did a home visit for a quadriplegic patient in order to propose an environmental management plan. My tutor then asked me to make home modification propositions on a software tailored for ecological adaptations. And I ended up by writing an account of the visit. But what I mostly appreciated in this internship was that I was well instructed and supervised by my tutor, who let me do activities with patients on my own. She trusted me, which gave me more assertiveness in the patientcarer relationship and allowed me to have rather an easy collaboration with the multidisciplinary team of physiotherapists, teachers in adapted physical activities and neuropsychologists. However, there were some drawbacks which my tutor made me aware of, and that was about my reflexive analysis with patients, with whom she consequently asked me to fine-tune my observations. Therefore, in order to improve my analysis, I had to more consider the relation between the patients’ activity limitations, their objectives and the occupational therapy tools, materials and/or methods that I was to implement. (333 words)