Susan Tolan
Susan qualified as an Occupational Therapist in 1975. She trained in the area of Vocational Evaluation Techniques in 1979 at the ICD International Center for the Disabled in New York, which is an international leader in the area of Vocational Rehabilitation. She developed the vocational assessment unit in the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dun Laoghaire and has carried out vocational assessments for personal injury cases since 1987. She also worked as an Occupational Therapist in Southern Africa. She is a past chairperson and a past director of the board of the Association of Occupational Therapists of Ireland (AOTI) and a founding member and past president of the Irish Association of Vocational Rehabilitation Consultants. Susan is a registered member of CORU, the statutory Irish Health and Social Care regulatory body.
Susan has worked in the area of private practice since 1997 and her practice is confined to carrying out vocational assessments and preparing vocational assessment reports for High Court personal injury cases.
Richard Tolan
Richard has a Master's in Occupational Therapy from the University of Cumbria, UK. He has extensive experience of working as a clinical Occupational Therapist in a range of clinical settings including: The Royal Free Hospital London, South Essex Partnership Trust Epping, Guy’s and St. Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust London and Croydon University Hospital. He is a member of the Association of Occupational Therapists of Ireland, The Royal College of Occupational Therapists, the World Federation of Occupational Therapists and he is also a registered member of CORU, the statutory Irish Health and Social Care regulatory body.
During his time as a clinical Occupational Therapist Richard gained considerable experience in the areas of neurological rehabilitation, the prescription of aids and appliances, elderly care and dementia, cognitive rehabilitation, oncology, palliative care, infectious diseases and vocational rehabilitation. He has worked with people who have a range of physical and mental health conditions across both clinical and community settings. The focus of his practice has been on understanding the relationship between health and occupational performance in a person’s daily life, leisure and career and the promotion of well-being through engagement with meaningful and productive activity.
Richard returned to Ireland in late 2017 with a goal of building upon his knowledge of Vocational Rehabilitation and to use his experience to work as a Vocational Assessor. Initially he worked with Ms. Susan Tolan, Vocational Assessor and in early 2019 he went into practice with Susan with the formation of Tolan & Associates Occupational Therapists and Vocational Assessors. Richard provides comprehensive vocational assessments detailing a person’s functional and occupational capacity for work. He provides detailed medico–legal reports based on a face-to face assessment of a client, during which he conducts a thorough review of their work experience and their medical history.
