Dr Jessica Hill
Dr

Jessica Hill

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+61 7 344 33772

Background

Jess has worked as a paediatric occupational therapist in private practice since graduating from her undergraduate degree. She gained additional training in animal-assisted therapy (canine and equine) in 2015 and became interested in the role animals could play in facilitating client motivation and engagement within therapy sessions. This interest led Jess to complete her PhD exploring the efficacy of canine-assisted occupational therapy with autistic children. Since completing her PhD Jess has continued her research into the impact of human-animal interaction to human and animal health and wellbeing resulting in a number of publications. In line with this research Jess is also the Co-director of The University of Queensland Animal-Assisted intervention Alliance, and the Community Engagement Manager for Animal Therapies Ltd. Jess is also qualified as a personal trainer and has clinical and research experience working to support people with disability engage in physical activity. Jess is a current researcher and coach within the UQ ParaSTART Program.

Availability

Dr Jessica Hill is:
Available for supervision
Media expert

Fields of research

Agricultural, Veterinary and Food Sciences Allied health and rehabilitation science Biomedical and Clinical Sciences Health Sciences Occupational therapy Veterinary sciences

Qualifications

  • Bachelor (Honours), Charles Sturt University
  • Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Queensland

Research interests

  • Animal-assisted services

    The safe and ethical incorporation of animal-assisted services including assistance animals, therapy animals and companion animals

  • Supporting physical activity participation for people with disability

    Methods and strategies to support regular participation in physical activity for people with disability.

  • Autism spectrum disorder

    Clinical reasoning and decision making for evidence based intervention, client-centered, family-centered practice

Search Professor Jessica Hill’s works on UQ eSpace

45 works between 2019 and 2025
All (45) Journal Article (38) Other Outputs (2) Conference Publication (2) Book Chapter (3)

41 - 45 of 45 works

2020

Book Chapter

Animal-assisted occupational therapy

Hill, Jessica (2020). Animal-assisted occupational therapy. Animal-Assisted Interventions for Health and Human Service Professionals. (pp. 271-293) Hauppauge, NY United States: Nova Science Publishers.

Animal-assisted occupational therapy

2020

Book Chapter

Minimum standards for the conduct of animal-assisted interventions

Driscoll, Carlie, Coghlan, Simon, Cawdell-Smith, Judy, Diamantakos, Evangelos, Hill, Jessica and Irwin, Tangela (2020). Minimum standards for the conduct of animal-assisted interventions. Animal-assisted interventions for health and human service professionals. (pp. 467-473) New York, NY United States: Nova Science Publishers.

Minimum standards for the conduct of animal-assisted interventions

2019

Journal Article

Canine assisted occupational therapy: protocol of a pilot randomised control trial for children on the autism spectrum

Hill, Jessica, Ziviani, Jenny, Cawdell-Smith, Judy and Driscoll, Carlie (2019). Canine assisted occupational therapy: protocol of a pilot randomised control trial for children on the autism spectrum. Open Journal of Pediatrics, 09 (03), 199-217. doi: 10.4236/ojped.2019.93020

Canine assisted occupational therapy: protocol of a pilot randomised control trial for children on the autism spectrum

2019

Journal Article

Canine-assisted occupational therapy for children on the autism spectrum: Challenges in practice

Hill, Jessica, Ziviani, Jenny, Driscoll, Carlie and Cawdell-Smith, Judy (2019). Canine-assisted occupational therapy for children on the autism spectrum: Challenges in practice. British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 83 (4), 030802261985885-219. doi: 10.1177/0308022619858851

Canine-assisted occupational therapy for children on the autism spectrum: Challenges in practice

2019

Journal Article

Can canine-assisted interventions affect the social behaviours of children on the autism spectrum?: s systematic review

Hill, Jessica, Ziviani, Jenny, Driscoll, Carlie and Cawdell-Smith, Judy (2019). Can canine-assisted interventions affect the social behaviours of children on the autism spectrum?: s systematic review. Review Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 6 (1), 13-25. doi: 10.1007/s40489-018-0151-7

Can canine-assisted interventions affect the social behaviours of children on the autism spectrum?: s systematic review

Current funding

  • 2025 - 2026
    Digitalisation of the Support Needs Assessment Tool Sports and Exercise
    Beyond Sports Foundation
    Open grant
  • 2024 - 2026
    Implementation and evaluation of a co-designed capability and capacity building training package to support autistic young people participate in grassroot sports.
    AUS Department of Health, Disability and Ageing Information, Linkages and Capacity Building Social and Community Participation
    Open grant
  • 2023 - 2027
    Implementation and scale-up of a consumer co-designed physical activity promotion program for people with moderate-to-profound disabilities
    NHMRC MRFF PPHR - Effective Treatments and Therapies
    Open grant

Availability

Dr Jessica Hill is:
Available for supervision

Looking for a supervisor? Read our advice on how to choose a supervisor.

Supervision history

Current supervision

Enquiries

Contact Dr Jessica Hill directly for media enquiries about:

  • animal-assisted therapy
  • assistance animals
  • autims
  • disability
  • paediatrics
  • physical activity
  • sport

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