Season 6 Episode 8: The Return to OT: Rebuilding Confidence, Skills and a Career with Intention

In this episode of OT Coaching Confidential, Alyce is joined by Bobby, an occupational therapist in the process of returning to paediatric practice after spending eight years overseas working across health coaching, strength and conditioning, and other roles outside occupational therapy.

After allowing his registration to lapse, Bobby made the decision to return to Australia and to OT but quickly discovered that coming back to the profession involved far more than simply submitting a registration application.

Over the past several months, he has invested heavily in professional development, completed extensive shadowing and mentoring, navigated the AHPRA re-registration process, and approached his return with a clear goal: not simply to become registered again, but to become the best therapist he can be.

Together, we explore what it really looks like to return to occupational therapy after significant time away, how much the profession and employment landscape have changed, and why taking ownership of your own professional development matters at every stage of your career.

We explore:

• Returning to occupational therapy after eight years away from the profession

• Navigating AHPRA re-registration, recency of practice requirements, and the uncertainty within the process

• The time, financial investment, professional development, and shadowing involved in preparing to return

• Why starting the registration process earlier can make a significant difference

• Finding your way back into professional networks and learning when you have been disconnected from OT for years

• Using mentoring, professional development, shadowing, and professional communities intentionally

• Choosing your next OT role based on values, supervision, support, and opportunities for growth

• Looking beyond recruitment language to understand what a workplace actually values

• What meaningful supervision and support can look like for a returning therapist

• Taking responsibility for your own professional development rather than expecting your workplace to provide everything

• Curiosity, lifelong learning, and knowing your scope as foundations for becoming an exceptional therapist

• Why access to skilled clinicians, observation, and therapeutic role models matters

• Recognising when a plateau might actually mean you need a new challenge or opportunity to grow

Key takeaways:

• If you are considering returning to OT, start exploring the registration process early, it may take considerably longer than expected

• Returning after time away does not mean starting from zero; experience from other roles and stages of life can shape the therapist you become

• You do not need to accept the first role available simply because you are returning to practice, take time to understand what support, supervision, and workplace culture actually look like

• Ask prospective employers what a typical day or week looks like and what separates therapists who thrive in their organisation from those who do not

• Good supervision needs to be more than a promise; look for clarity around frequency, structure, joint sessions, and how support will change over time

• Professional growth requires personal responsibility, workplaces can support your development, but they cannot own it for you

• Exceptional therapists remain curious, recognise what they do not know, seek out people who know more, and become increasingly confident about the boundaries of their own scope

• Learning how you learn best helps you invest your professional development time and money more intentionally

• You do not need to know exactly where your career is heading before taking the next step; curiosity, connection, and intentional action can open opportunities along the way

Mentioned in this episode:

• AHPRA and the Occupational Therapy Board of Australia re-registration and recency of practice process

• Occupational Therapy Australia, including professional development, interest groups, resources, and professional practice advisors

• The Art of Paeds

• The OT Coach Hub and professional mentoring

• The OT Coach Australia's training on choosing your next OT role

• Michelle Bihary's work around lifelong learning and professional development

• Recruitment support for allied health professionals

Brought to you by Alyce Svensk at The OT Coach Australia.

Supporting allied health professionals to build confidence, clarity, and connection through mentoring, supervision, workshops, and The OT Coach Academy.

If this conversation resonated with you and you would like support as you return to practice, navigate your next career step, or continue developing as a clinician, visit The OT Coach Australia to explore how we can support you.

The OT Coach Australia. Where therapists come to grow.