Head of Division and Senior Lecturer in Occupational Therapy
Division: Occupational Therapy & Arts Therapies
Dr Duncan Pentland (D Health Soc Sci, MSc (OT), MA, BSc (Hons) is Head of the Occupational Therapy & Arts Therapies Division and a Senior Lecturer in Occupational Therapy.
- Overview
- Research Interests
- Research Publications
- Teaching & Learning
Following completion of my MSc in OT, I worked in acute stroke and orthopaedic rehabilitation services before starting work in knowledge transfer and exchange. While working for QMU and NHS Lothian as a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) Associate I completed my Professional Doctorate of Health and Social Sciences with the thesis ‘Realising evidence based practice: a systemic investigation of core knowledge processes in mental health.’
I currently teach across all levels of occupational therapy education at QMU with special focus on critical clinical decision making and the development and evaluation of occupational therapy practice. In 2016 I was awarded the QMU Students’ Union STaR Award for Teaching Excellence.
My research and practice development work focuses on people living with neurological conditions, primarily developing methods to improve and evaluate the outcomes of complex interventions. I currently work as part of the strategic partnership between QMU and Alzheimer Scotland providing support for AHPs across Scotland working with people living with dementia. This includes building and sharing the evidence base for home and community based interventions. I am also a member and Vice-Chair of the College of Occupational Therapists’ Research and Development Board.
Affiliations/Memberships to Other Organisations:
- Member of the British Association of Occupational Therapists
Professional Social Media:
Active Research Interests:
- Stroke and acquired brain injury rehabilitation
- Occupational therapy for dementia
- Long term physical and neurological disabilities
- Digital assistive technologies
- Knowledge systems for health and social care
- Evaluative methods for therapy
Research Methods:
- Intervention and economic evaluation
- Action research
- Soft systems methodology
I teach across all levels of the undergraduate and pre and post registration MSc in occupational therapy courses.
My primary areas of teaching include research methods, critical thinking, information literacy, clinical decision making, assessment theory and practice, intervention planning, philosophy for enquiry, project planning and management, and evaluation techniques.
I also supervise occupational therapists reading for PhD and Prof Doc.
