Mrs Louise Myles ~ Lecturer - Occupational Therapy

I am a registered occupational therapist and occupational therapy lecturer within the College of Healthcare Sciences at James Cook University. I have previously worked clinically in the areas of workplace rehabilitation, community rehabilitation and have a strong interest in both injury prevention and injury management across various industry settings.

I completed my PhD, exploring Australian adult handgrip strength in 2024. I have authored journal articles exploring the assessment and evaluation of handgrip strength and presented research findings at national conferences. I continue to have a keen interest how assessment practices evaluate functional performance.

My teaching and learning experiences have led to an interest in educational design to promote student learning and build student capacity for academic performance. I have supported student learning within my current role as the second-year level coordinator for occupational therapy and my previous role as academic advisor for occupational therapy. Additionally, my collaboration with a fellow occupational therapy academic and teaching and learning staff to promote academic capacity within students was acknowledged with a 2020 JCU Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning.

My current research initiatives include my role as the research lead on a team project exploring the choice of first job for occupational therapy graduates. I am also involved in an interprofessional research project which includes researchers from various health and educational backgrounds.

Teaching

• OT2015: Physical and Cognitive-neurological Determinants of Occupation (Level 2; TSV)
• RH2002: Clinical Medicine for Therapy (Level 2; TSV)

Interests

Research

• Louise's research interests include the assessment and evaluation of adult handgrip strength; the use of assessment to evaluate functional performance; educational design to promote student learning and academic performance; students first choice of job as a new graduate; consumer engagement within the curriculum; workplace injury management and injury prevention.

Research Disciplines

• Allied health and rehabilitation science (4201)

Socio-Economic Objectives

• Provision of health and support services (2003)
• Clinical health (2001)

Awards

• 2020 - JCU Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning

Memberships

• 2023 to 2024 - University Workplace Health and Safety Committee member
• 2002 to 2024 - Registered Occupational Therapist
• 2002 to 2024 - Occupational Therapy Australia

These are the most recent publications associated with this author. To see a detailed profile of all publications stored at JCU, visit ResearchOnline@JCU. Hover over Altmetrics badges to see social impact.

Journal Articles

• Myles L, Massy-Westropp N and Barnett F (in press) The how and why of handgrip strength assessment. British Journal of Occupational Therapy,
• Myles L, Massy-Westropp N and Barnett F (2023) Experiences of occupational therapy clinicians on the assessment and evaluation of adult handgrip strength. British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 86 (3). pp. 188-196

Other research outputs

• Myles L, Barnett F and Massey-Westropp N (2023) What factors influence Australian adult grip strength. Australian Occupational Therapy Journal, 70 (S1). pp. 225-226
• Eagers J, Myles L, Lloyd N and Kaesehagen C (2023) Developing teamwork skills among first-year occupational therapy students. Australian Occupational Therapy Journal, 70 (S1). p. 26
• Myles L, Barnett F and Massy-Westropp N (2021) Assessment and evaluation of adult grip strength; experiences of occupational therapy clinicians in north Queensland. Australian Occupational Therapy Journal, 68 (S1). p. 112