OT professor presents at Belgium symposium

Dr. Diane Powers-Foltz Dirette, professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy, was invited to present the keynote address at the Belgium Occupational Therapy Research Symposium, held earlier in September at the Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium.

Her presentation, "Publishing OT Research: Challenges and Opportunities," was delivered  to occupational therapists and other applied health professionals from all over Belgium. The symposium also included faculty and Ph.D. student research presentations from universities throughout Belgium.

In addition to her keynote presentation, Dr. Dirette also led a workshop entitled "Tips for Successful Scholarly Publication: Practical Session," in which she helped researchers apply the information from her keynote presentation.

"Dr. Dirette has long been instrumental in helping others succeed in publication of clinical research," says Dr. Ben Atchison, retired chair of the Department of Occupational Therapy. "She is recognized internationally for her research and for her work on the Open Journal of Occupational Therapy."

Dr. Dirette's research is focused on self awareness among persons with brain injury. She is also editor in chief of the Open Journal of Occupational Therapy, an open source journal published by the WMU Department of Occupational Therapy and widely read by occupational therapists around the globe.