Extraordinary General Assembly

The COTEC Executive Committee felt that is necessary to hold an Extraordinary General Assembly on the 7th January 2026 at 4pm CET. This will be held online. Agenda and Paper have already been circulated – please get in touch with COTEC Office should you have any questions or difficulties.

Summary of the Profession

COTEC Director of Operations and Vice-President Finance have been carrying out the last updates to the Summary of the Profession Questionnaire. This year a new platform will be used, REDCap, which will ensure better data handling and improved resources for all our Members. A pilot run was successfully implemented and the questionnaire will be sent to all Members in the coming days.

Governance Day and 14th General Assembly

Our next Governance Day will be held on the 11th September, 2025 with the 14th COTEC General Assembly taking place the following day, the 12th September, 2025 in Bucharest, Romania. More details about the venue will follow in the coming weeks. In the meantime, please save the dates in your diary – we look forward to seeing you all in Bucharest.

COTEC on Social Media                 

COTEC has over 5,130 followers on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/COTECEurope/ 

On X (formerly known as Twitter) @COTECEurope has more than 3,320 followers.

On LinkedIn we have now reached more than 1,320 followers.

On Instagram @cotec_europe with more than 1,010 followers.

Join us and make COTEC and occupational therapy more visible in Europe.

Please also follow the websites of Occupational Therapy Europe  www.oteurope.eu , ENOTHE www.enothe.eu and ROTOS www.rotosfoundation.eu  

COTEC Executive Committee

In order to support the Executive Committee Members in their work and ensure that all communication within the organisation and beyond is strong and sustainable, we have now moved towards a Microsoft Online subscription whereby all official COTEC email addresses are now supported by a Microsoft 365 license. The monthly virtual meetings are now being held through Teams. For agenda items or requests, please contact Vice-President Administration Ann-Marie Morrissey or COTEC Office, info@coteceurope.eu

Signing of New Contract with Director of Operations

During our Interim Meeting in Berlin, a new contract was signed with Shawn Abela Tabone, to extend his services as Director of Operations through 2026.

Governance Day and 14th General Assembly

Our next face-to-face meetings will take place in September/October 2026 in Bucharest, Romania. The exact dates and venue will be announced shortly.

COTEC on Social Media                 

COTEC has over 5,020 followers on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/COTECEurope/ 

On X (formerly known as Twitter) @COTECEurope has more than 3,340 followers.

On LinkedIn we have now reached more than 1,200 followers.

On Instagram @cotec_europe with more than 895 followers.

Join us and make COTEC and occupational therapy more visible in Europe.

Please also follow the websites of Occupational Therapy Europe  www.oteurope.eu , ENOTHE www.enothe.eu and ROTOS www.rotosfoundation.eu  

Occupational Therapy Europe, OT-Europe, Executive consists of the Presidents/Chairs and Vice Presidents/Vice Chairs of the three branches – COTEC, ENOTHE and ROTOS. The Executive has an on-line meeting every month. 

Important agenda items in the past months have been the preparing of the second Strategic Plan for the five-year period 2026 – 2030. This was recently presented to COTEC GA representatives during the Governance day and representatives had the opportunity to comment and ask questions on OT-Europe work.

Another current topic is the planning of the 2nd OT-Europe Congress and the location and dates will be published later in the year.

OT-Europe has for years had a representative in the European Forum for Primary Care, EFPC, Advisory Board. The previous representative, Sandra Rowan from the UK, left the position this year and Klaus Gasperl-Krachler was proposed as her replacement, and  was elected at the EFPC Annual meeting in September. Klaus is an Occupational Therapist and lecturer from Austria.On behalf of OT-Europe Sandra and Klaus prepared a workshop that was held by Klaus at the EFPC conference.  COTEC Vice President Yara Peterko supported Sandra and Klaus in the workshop planning phase. The title was Integrating Occupational Therapy into Primary Care: Unlocking Interdisciplinary Potential. They reported that especially general practitioners attended the workshop, all leaving with a plan on how to integrate Occupational Therapists in primary care initiatives.

Dear all, 

I am honored to introduce this edition of our Fall newsletter, shortly after returning from the Governance Day and General Assembly with our Member Associations in Berlin. During those two days, passionate voices from across Europe came together to discuss our shared commitment to strengthening Occupational Therapy practitioners’ voices within the evolving landscape of healthcare services.

This year’s General Assembly struck me once again as a dynamic forum for open exchange of visions and honest debates. We engaged in discussions about the critical role Occupational Therapy practitioners play in enhancing health outcomes, promoting participation, and supporting well-being across diverse populations. Our Member Associations’ representatives shared insights and strategies to advocate for our profession – not only to policymakers but also to the interprofessional team and the wider public who benefit from our work.

A central theme emerged: the need to make Occupational Therapy more visible and to clearly distinguish our unique contributions from those of other professions. In an era where interprofessional collaboration is key to challenges we face not just within the health workforce, but also demographic and epidemiological transitions, it is equally important that our distinct perspective – centered around occupation, participation, and meaningful engagement – remains recognised and valued. These fruitful conversations were not just theoretical; they resulted in actionable commitments. We reaffirmed our dedication to advocating for Occupational Therapy’s integration into European healthcare services at every level. We also agreed to work collectively to address barriers to access, ensuring that Occupational Therapy remains a vital, accessible resource for individuals and communities navigating health challenges. By sharing our successes and learning from each other, we strengthen both our profession and the systems in which we work.

Before this year comes to an end, we remain focused and work integrating the Occupational Therapy voice in policy outputs such as the Harnessing Talent Platform and the Health Technology Assessment Stakeholder Network. We communicate the value of Occupational Therapy through exhibiting at the European Public Health Conference and participating at the EuroHealthNet’s Matchmaking Webinar. And last, but not least, we will be organising a Webinar addressing the current challenge of climate change and its impact on health and gather with our Member Associations to further work on actions to increase visibility and advocate for the Occupational Therapy profession across Europe.

As we look ahead, may we continue to share our passion for Occupational Therapy by highlighting its vital, tangible societal benefits by reducing disability, supporting participation and reintegration, and improving overall quality of life. 

Wishing you all a productive and colorful fall season ahead,

Lisa Wetzlmair-Kephart

Vice-President Finance, on behalf of the COTEC Executive Committee

Following several on-line meetings the three presidents of OT-Europe branches finally met in person at the 1st International congress of CGCTO.

Caroline Fischl, Miriam Santamaría-Peláez and Anu Söderström were speakers in the international panel session. During breakfast and coffee breaks the three had the opportunity to discuss some OT-Europe issues, too.

Annual meeting

OT-Europe Annual meeting 2025 took place on-line June 18, 2025. The whole Executive attended and Annual and Financial reports 2024 were approved.

Adjoined to the annual meeting there was also a regular business meeting and the Executive discussed eg. the 2nd OT-Europe Congress and representation on European level. The Executive is also working on the OT-Europe Strategy 2026 – 2030. This will be presented to the three branches later this year.

COTEC Executive Committee Meetings 

COTEC Executive Committee continues the monthly virtual meetings through Zoom platform.  The next Interim Meeting is scheduled to be held in a face-to-face format the day before and after the General Assembly activities in Berlin. For agenda items or requests, please contact Vice-President Administration Ann-Marie Morrissey or COTEC Office, info@coteceurope.eu

Governance Day and General Assembly

Don’t forget that our Governance Day will be held on Friday 26th September 2025 in Berlin, Germany. The 13th COTEC General Assembly will follow on Saturday 27th September 2025. The venue for the official meetings (i.e. Governance Day and General Assembly) will be Holiday Inn Berlin City Center East Prenzlauer Berg. Please be aware that are multiple Holiday Inn Hotels in Berlin with similar name structures. The venue has allocated some rooms for COTEC General Assembly Representatives at Eur 160 per night on bed and breakfast basis. You can book these rooms directly with the hotel – res@hi-berlin.com – quoting COTEC and the name of the venue.

Summary of the Profession

The Executive Committee is happy to announce that the Summary of the Profession 2025 is now ready to be published in the coming days. Thanks to all Member Associations whose contributions ensure that such a publication can be published year after year.

COTEC on Social Media                 

COTEC has over 4,980 followers on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/COTECEurope/ 

On X (formerly known as Twitter) @COTECEurope has more than 3,360 followers.

On LinkedIn we have now reached more than 1,100 followers.

On Instagram @cotec_europe with more than 830 followers.

Join us and make COTEC and occupational therapy more visible in Europe.

Please also follow the websites of Occupational Therapy Europe  www.oteurope.eu , ENOTHE www.enothe.eu and ROTOS www.rotosfoundation.eu  

COTEC President Anu Söderström and Vice-President Yara Peterko have been actively participating in OT-Europe Executive Board meetings on a monthly basis. In addition to these regular meetings, a dedicated strategy planning meeting was held, during which the vision, mission, and objectives of OT-Europe also were reviewed and updated. Planning for the OT-Europe Congress 2028 has also started, and we look forward to keeping everyone updated as we move forward.

COTEC Executive Committee Meetings 

COTEC Executive Committee continues the monthly virtual meetings through Zoom platform.  The next Interim Meeting is scheduled to be held in online next June. For agenda items or requests, please contact Vice-President Administration Ann-Marie Morrissey or COTEC Office, info@coteceurope.eu

Governance Day and General Assembly

We are happy to announce that our Governance Day will be held on Friday 26th September 2025 in Berlin, Germany. The 13th COTEC General Assembly will follow on Saturday 27th September 2025. The venue for the official meetings (i.e. Governance Day and General Assembly) will be Holiday Inn Berlin City Center East Prenzlauer Berg. Please be aware that are multiple Holiday Inn Hotels in Berlin with similar name structures. The venue has allocated some rooms for COTEC General Assembly Representatives at Eur 160 per night on bed and breakfast basis. You can book these rooms directly with the hotel – res@hi-berlin.com – quoting COTEC and the name of the venue. Furthermore, don’t forget that the call for Financial Assistance is open until 9th May 2025.

Summary of the Profession

The Executive Committee is happy to announce that 31 Member Associations have submitted data for the Summary of the Profession 2024. Our annual publication is now being compiled and will be published within the next annual quarter.

COTEC on Social Media                 

COTEC has over 4,900 followers on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/COTECEurope/ 

On X (formerly known as Twitter) @COTECEurope has more than 3,380 followers.

On LinkedIn we have now reached more than 1,033 followers.

On Instagram @cotec_europe with more than 700 followers.

Join us and make COTEC and occupational therapy more visible in Europe.

Please also follow the websites of Occupational Therapy Europe  www.oteurope.eu , ENOTHE www.enothe.eu and ROTOS www.rotosfoundation.eu