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“To recognise our responsibility to always look outwards, whilst also responding to opportunities within our organisation that allows us to reach for change that makes a difference.” Dr Fiona Maclean ROLE Senior Lecturer, Occupational Therapy and Arts Therapies QMU Academic Champion for Entrepreneurship SPECIFIC PROJECT OR INITIATIVE Santander Universities UK Internship Programme A collaboration between QMU and Alzheimer Scotland An innovative and unique partnership arising from our understanding of the influence meaningful occupation has to people’s health and wellbeing, resulted in paid internship opportunities for occupational therapy students to undertake projects with Alzheimer Scotland. The aim of our work was to build an innovative academic internship collaboration with Alzheimer Scotland and occupational therapy students at QMU steered by the importance and value of meaningful occupation. Occupation may be defined broadly as the various everyday activities people do as individuals, in families and with communities to occupy time and bring meaning and purpose to life. Our collaboration is truly unique and has grown to include 9 paid internships placed with Alzheimer Scotland since 2013. Examples of our work include, ‘This is Me’, a film written and created in partnership with a person experiencing dementia, challenging some of the assumptions we may hold connected to living with dementia.