Viewing Fieldwork
Education Through
the Lens of Servant
Leadership
PRESENTED BY:
JASON MAHILO, MOT, OTR/L & KRISTIN WINSTON, PHD, OTR/L
What is leadership?
Formal versus Informal Leadership
“If we want occupational therapy to
really act on changing society, more
of us have to be leaders in all kinds of
way” P. Moyers
AS CITED IN (STRZELECKI, 2007)
Various types of leadership
theories/styles

Autocratic

Charismatic

Laissez-faire

Democratic

Transactional

Transformational
Why Servant Leadership?

Servant Leadership is a natural tendency that one wants to serve,
serve first (Parris & Peachey, 2013).

Servant Leadership encompasses building on strengths to
encourage others to strive for their best as a weakness is only a
missing strength (Spears, 1998).

Servant leaders recognize that others need to be guided,
encouraged, helped, and persuaded to capitalize on all
opportunities around them (Spears, 1998).
Servant Leadership Principles
(Spears, 2010):
1.
Listening
2.
Empathy
3.
Healing
4.
Awareness
5.
Persuasion
6.
Conceptualization
7.
Foresight
8.
Stewardship
9.
Commitment
10.
Building Community
Building Strengths in Fieldwork
Through Servant Leadership
How to apply Servant Leadership
Characteristics within a 12 week Level
2 Fieldwork
Weeks 1-3
Weeks 4-6
Awareness
Listening
Empathy
Healing
Conceptualization
Weeks 7-9
Weeks 10-12
Persuasion
Commitment
Stewardship
Foresight
Building Community
Awareness

Do you and your student have a sense of what is important for the
fieldwork experience?
Awareness (weeks 1-3)
Definition

requiring fieldwork students to selfevaluate their skillset to provide
ethical care to all populations.
Examples for application in
fieldwork:

Have the student identify his or
her:

Areas for growth

Areas of strength

Personal LTG’s/STG’s for
performance on Level II Fieldwork.

Current level of knowledge
regarding
application/comprehension of
standardized assessment
Listening:

As the fieldwork educator what steps might you take to model
servant leadership through listening?

Does the student believe that you value what they have to say and
that he or she will be heard?

Does the student have the skills to value what the client has to say?
Listening (weeks 1-3)
Definition

students utilizing
subjective/objective assessments
for understanding functional
impairments and capabilities of
clients as taught by educators
Examples for application in
fieldwork:

OT evaluation process

Listening to the responses from
patients during the evaluation
process

Obtaining subjective reports from
patients, caregivers, and family
Healing:

Does the student know that he or she can come to you if things are
difficult?

Does the student recognize when clients are working through
difficult situations?
Healing (weeks 4-6)
Definition

holistic approach with the mind,
body, and spirit of clients through
re-engaging in meaningful
occupations
Examples for application in
fieldwork:
Choosing appropriate goal driven
activity that promote healing for
the mind, body, and spirit.
 Encouraging participation in
motivational activities identified by
the client.
 Feeling a sense of
accomplishment mentally,
physically, and spiritually

Empathy:

Have you demonstrated that you understand where the student is
coming from and what he or she is going through?

Have you educated your student on “therapeutic use of self”?
Empathy (weeks 4-6)
Definition

ability of a student to place
themselves in a client’s shoes to
understand his/her lifestyle through
therapeutic use of self
Examples for application in
fieldwork:

Identifying the process of clinical
use of self for building rapport with
clients.

Demonstrating expressions or
reactions of sympathy and
concern during conversations or
interactions.

Learning verbal and non-verbal
forms of communication can
display signs of empathy
Conceptualization:

Do you encourage students to develop their ideas?

Do you assist students with planning for their future and their own
personal goals?
Conceptualization (weeks 4-6)
Definition

students effectively plan current
and future short/long term goals
for the client from a holistic
perspective with a just-right
challenge
Examples for application in
fieldwork:

Accurate and goal driven
STG’s/LTG’s. Able to plan for progress
to be achieved during interventions
for increasing functional
independence in ADLs/IADLs.

Appropriate
expectation/generalization of
information to plan for progress to
be achieved

Appropriate
expectation/generalization of
information from evals/recerts/other
documentation to plan for progress
to be acheived
Persuasion:

Have you worked to foster a sense of confidence in your student as
he or she interacts with clients, families, and staff?

Have you demonstrated a sense of sureness in your presentation as
a servant leader to your student?
Persuasion (weeks 7-9)
Definition

students demeanor of confidence
to convince clients, colleagues, or
family members of current
interventions through Evidence
Based Practice.
Examples for application in
fieldwork:

Demeanor towards benefit of OT

Ability to provide EBP research for
justifying interventions utilized
during therapy

Ability to explain professionally the
clinical reasoning behind activities.
Commitment:

Does the student see you as someone who is committed to helping
him or her grow and develop as a clinician?

Do you display your commitment to the client by participating in
care plane discussions with other disciplines.
Commitment (weeks 7-9)
Definition

learning as scholars to participate
in constant interdisciplinary
communication & continuing
education seminars
Examples for application in
fieldwork:

Think !!!

Pair !!!

Share !!!

Initiates interdisciplinary
communication wit other
disciplines (RN, PT, SLP, etc.) and
third party vendors (i.e. HH
companies)

Completing in-service or facility
presentation to benefit population
being treated.
Stewardship:

Does the student see you as a positive role model?
Stewardship (weeks 7-9)
Definition

students master the Code of Ethics
of beneficence to place the
better of society at the foremost of
all skilled services
Examples for application in
fieldwork:

Demonstrates ability to provide
ethical care consistently with
billing and interventions.

Honors all Code of Ethics for all
services rendered demonstrating
why OT is considered a skilled
service.
Foresight:

Are you able to demonstrate a vision for the fieldwork experience to
your student?

Are you able to convey your vision of the future of the profession for
your student?
Foresight (weeks 10-12)
Definition

learning the use of “in the
moment” projection through
clinical reasoning to assess
functional gains.
Examples for application in
fieldwork:

Thoughts??

Being able to respond to various
complaints or deficits identified by the
patient.

Ability to identify the “just right fit” for an
activity and complications experienced
during an intervention that requires
adjustment.

Guide a student into responding to how a
patient acts during an intervention
according to their verbal/nonverbal
communication

Ability to decrease/increase resistance or
participation requirements to maximize
rehab potential according to ability.
Building Community:

Does the student feel a sense of community where you work?

Are you able to foster the student’s sense of belonging to the larger
community of occupational therapy?
Building Community (weeks 10-12)
Definition

care shown towards the
community by studying and
adhering to procedural and social
justice in society during fieldwork
study
Examples for application in
fieldwork:

Ideas and suggestions??

Demonstrating desire to benefit
society as a whole not just patients
being treated (family members,
friends, and caregivers being
included)

How can our interventions benefit
a culture/society, how can we
assist friends/caregivers of a
patient, or how can we educate
for future compensations to
prevent difficulty after discharge.
Summary and Group Take Away
Messages for Level II Fieldwork:

Servant Leadership can apply to practitioners
not just fieldwork students and clinical fieldwork
educators

Servant leaders have to possess the will to lead
and foster growth in others
“If we want occupational therapy to really
act on changing society, more of us have to
be leaders in all kinds of way” P. Moyers
References:

Crippen, C. (2010). Inclusive education: A servant-leadership
perspective. Education Canada, 45(4), 19-22. Retrieved from
http://www.cea-ace.ca

Dunbar, S. (2015). Servant leadership and the person-environmentoccupation model in S. B. Dunbar & K. Winston (Eds.), An
occupational perspective on leadership: Theoretical and practical
dimensions (2nd ed.) (pp. 49-57). Thorofare, N.J.: Slack Incorporated.

Greenleaf, R.K. (1977). Servant leadership: A journey into the nature
of legitimate power and greatness. Mahway, N.J.: Paulist Press.

Northouse, P.G. (2013). Leadership theory and practice (6th ed.).
Thousand Oaks, CA.: Sage Publications.

Parris, D.L. & Peachey, J.W. (2013). A systematic literature review of
servant leadership theory in organizational context. Journal of Business
Ethics, 113(3), 377-393. doi:10.1007/s10551-012-1322-6

Spears, L.C. (2004). Prescription for organizational health servant
leadership: Have what it takes to be a servant leader? Reflections on
Nursing Leadership, fourth quarter, 24-26.

Spears, L. (1998). Insights on leadership: Service, stewardship, spirit, and
servant-leadership. Toronto: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Spears, L.C. (2010). Character and servant leadership: Ten
characteristics of effective, caring leaders. The Journal of Virtues and
Leadership, 1(1), 25-30.

Waterman, H. (2011). Principles of 'servant leadership' and how they
can enhance practice. Nursing Management, 17(9), 24-26.