From a young age, Christina had a burning desire to work in healthcare as she always believed in giving back to her community. She chose subjects during her A-levels which guaranteed her a career in midwifery at university.
A young Christina was instead misdirected to the occupational therapy department. Curious by nature, Christina began asking questions to the staff working there about the profession and how it helps patients as part of their care plan.
She said: “I stumbled upon OT by chance but was blown away by the breadth and depth of the profession and the limitless possibilities that it can provide.
I could not believe that OTs could use so many innovative techniques as we can be as creative as we want and use any activity or intervention as long as we can justify it and ensure it has meaning and purpose to the individual we are treating.
“From that point on, I chose to become an occupational therapist and have never looked back since!”
Took every opportunity that came up
Christina commenced her healthcare journey by completing an Occupational Therapy BHSc at The University College of Ripon and York St. John (now York St. John University) in 2002.
After working in York for a year, Christina joined South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in 2003. A hungry and ambitious Christina’s first role was a mixed physical and mental health graduate rotation programme.
Slowly and steadily, she took every opportunity that came her way and took the plunge to occupy senior posts in vascular rehabilitation and stroke rehabilitation.
Moreover, she took a step further by gaining valuable experience in a wide range of clinical specialties including housing adaptations, neonatal,motor neurone disease (MND) and trauma – to name a few.
Since 2021, Christina has worked at a senior leadership level including a slight sidestep from OT – where she worked as the trust’s senior lead for transfer of care.
She currently works as head occupational therapist for the integrated occupational therapy service – encompassing South Tees, Hambleton and Richmondshire acute and community services and Redcar and Middlesbrough local authorities.
Christina said: “The highlight of my career is without a doubt being recently appointed as head of occupational therapy.
“I feel privileged to have been allowed to give something back to the profession I love and to the local community that I was born and brought up in.”
Here, she provides professional leadership and clinical direction to staff across integrated partnership organisations.
Alongside the therapy service leads and advanced/consultant-level therapists, she helps drive the direction of OT ensuring that the service is in line with the Royal College of Occupational Therapists and strategic direction of the trust and local authorities.
OT gives people the tools to be able to live their best lives
“OT gives people the tools to be able to live their best lives. We overcome challenges, think about creative solutions to problems and keep wellbeing and independence at the centre of every interaction,” added Christina.
She strongly believes that occupational therapy can be the solution to so many problems. It’s because what occupational therapists do may seem like small changes but these baby steps combine to make a big impact on a patient’s health.
Christina loves the opportunity to promote the profession and showcase the positive impact that OT has on the patient journey. But what she loves even more is hearing about all the success stories and watching people accomplish great things in their careers.
When asked about what advice would she give to an aspiring occupational therapist, she said: “My advice for anyone thinking about OT would be to do as much research as possible to ensure it’s the right fit for you.
“A great place to start is by having a look at the Royal College of Occupational Therapy website to pick up loads of tips and advice. Also, one of the best ways to decide if a career in OT is for you is to shadow an occupational therapist – or to arrange to speak to one if shadowing isn’t practical.”
“A huge thank you to the 300 plus occupational therapists that work tirelessly every day across our trust,” she added.