BIOSKETCH
I am a recently retired lecturer from the Discipline of Occupational Therapy and currently hold the title of Honorary Lecturer since September 2024. With extensive experience as both a clinician and an academic, my career has been predominantly focused on mental health.My primary goal in life has always been to be a good human being and to help others become better versions of themselves. As an academic, it has been a privilege to assist and nurture students as they develop from fledglings into exceptional professionals.I strongly believe that being ethical means “doing the right thing, especially when no one is looking,” a principle I strive to uphold both professionally and personally.I obtained my Bachelor of Occupational Therapy degree from the then University of Durban-Westville (UDW) in 1986. I worked for six years in a mental health facility and subsequently managed community occupational therapy services in KwaZulu-Natal for 10 years, during which time I earned an MBA from the University of Wales.Since 2003, I have served as a lecturer at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, contributing to the development of future occupational therapists and advancing the field through education and mentorship.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
- Mental Health
- Education
- Managment
LIST OF PUBLICATIONS
Conference/Workshop Presentations
- “Role of occupational therapy with eating disorders” Institute of Family Therapy (1991)
- Role of occupational therapy in psychiatry” Doctor’s Guild (1993)
- Co-presenter of workshop on “social skills and the disabled” at the Congress for the Disabled (1992)
- “Self-presentation skills” workshop for occupational therapy assistants (1998)
- Co-ordinated and presented a workshop on ‘Disability grant assessment” for occupational therapists at Phoenix Assessment & Therapy Centre (October 1998)
- Presented a paper on the “Cost effectiveness of occupational therapy” at the Occupational Therapy Symposium (June 1999)
- Presented a workshop on “Assertive Communication” to the staff of Dayanand Gardens (2 September 1999)
- Was the chairperson of “The Child in Totality” workshop held at natal medical school and presented “The summary and Way forward session” of the workshop (29 October 1999)
- Co-ordinated and facilitated the process and drew up the position statement for occupational therapy within the district health system (1999-2001)
- Was the facilitator of the Disability position statement for occupational therapy workshops in Kwa-Zulu Natal
- Unlocking the “Power from within – role of occupational therapy in the empowerment of women” at Newlands Park Centre (24 may 2002) and Sol Namara hotel (08 August 2002)
- ABH fair Volunteer (2000-2009)
- Presented a paper on “The role of Occupational therapy with Leisure” at a national Recreation and Leisure conference in 2011 in Durban
- Presented a paper on ”Rehabilitation: does it work” at OTASA national conference 2012 in Durban
- Presented a paper on “the lived experiences of offsprings living with a parent with Mental Illness” at OTASA National Conference in Cape in April 2014
- Research
Supervision of Post graduate research - 2012 – “Job Satisfaction in Occupational Therapy: A Comparative Analysis” – masters student – completed
- 2010 – “ An exploratory study on cellular phone usage trends among urban teenagers and its relationship to repetitive strain injuries in the hand” – hand masters student
- 2014 – “Albino Identity among a group of teenage girls”
- 2014 – “the Effect on a 12 week stress management programme on a group of clients diagnosed with mental illness”
- 2016 – The factors influencing the return to work of individuals having sustained severe traumatic brain injuries in South Africa
- 2016 – “ The Role of the Occupational Therapist in Case Management in South Africa
- 2017/18 – “A study to explore and describe the daily occupations of black adults living with depression in an informal settlement in Eastern Cape, East London, in South Africa.” – “ Exploring the value of support groups among mothers living with HIV/AIDS in the Manzini Region, Swaziland”
- 2021/2022 – “IsiZulu cultural perspectives and experiences of mental health users and mental health in Occupational Therapy in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa” current
2016 Book chapters: Gurayah T, Govender P, Naidoo D, Fewster DL & Lingah T.
Faces of Caregiving in the South AfricanContext. In: Occupational Therapy without Borders: Integrating justice with Practice, 2nd Edition.Elsevier. In Press Publications:
- Scientific letter in SAJOT – April 2016 Job satisfaction in occupational therapists by U Sewpersadh, T Lingah and P Govender
- Journal Article in SAJOT – 2017; 47 (3): 17-24 – “We all need employment” – An exploration of the factors which influence the return-to-work after a severe traumatic brain injury by C Moller, T. Lingah and SM Phehlukwayo
- South African Journal of Occupational Therapy Aug, vol. 48 no. 2: 12-19 “The role of the occupational
Therapist in case management in South Africa”, K. Govender, C. Christopher and T. Lingah
- South African Journal of Occupational Therapy 2021; 51(2): 91-98 “The meaning that undergraduate Occupational Therapy students at the University of KwaZulu-Natal attach to the Occupation of dance” T. Lingah and J. Paruk
