How terrifying would it be to get in an accident, and completely forget how to do things people are used to doing everyday? An Occupational Therapist helps people who have been through an illness or an accident. When people go through these setbacks, they might lose some abilities to perform physical activities. Occupational Therapists help patients through activities people need to learn for everyday use. This would interest me since I love being around people and helping others. I would enjoy watching someone make progress, knowing I contributed to their recovery. I would really enjoy being an occupational therapist due to the preparation and education it requires, the one-on-one work with patients, and the tasks that would keep me up and going all day. Becoming an occupational therapist requires many years of constant drive and determination. This position requires a bachelor’s and master’s degree in biology and physiology. Bachelor’s and master’s degrees usually can take up to five years to obtain. Also, certain programs would appreciate their applicants to be well experienced in addition to …show more content…
Therapists could work with any age range, from a young child to an elder. A child, who may have been born with developmental issues, receive one-on-one help from therapists who teach them how to use certain devices. Some elders need aid from occupational therapists. If an elder is prone to falling quite often in their homes, therapists may discover possible causes in the falling and put a stop to it. If younger children have issues in the classroom, therapists help them function correctly during school activities (“Occupational Therapists”). Some patients may have trouble communicating and socializing in some instances, and occupational therapists help them to participate in social events and in the classroom ("What Is Occupational
The first question many people will ask you when it comes to choosing a career is “why did you choose that career?” Debbie explained that she knew she wanted to pursue this career when she was younger she grew up in the same household of her grandmother after she had a stroke. Being an Occupational Therapist is about wanting to help someone gain back their independence and you have to want it as much as they do!
Observing therapy assistants in the field and seeing what they do in their jobs was an eye opener for me. Getting to experience on-the-job shadowing helped me to identify the roles of a therapy assistant better than reading or talking to people about the job description. First, I shadowed at Athletico Physical Therapy, an outpatient facility in Festus, MO. Paul Kohler is the Occupational/Hand Therapist that I shadowed during my experience. There were several different injuries that I saw, ranging from people with work related injuries to jamming fingers in machines. After observing Mr. Kohler throughout the day, I got to see him interact with patients and perform activities that helped his patients in their rehabilitation phase of recovery. He told me that the improvements he sees first hand from his patients is rewarding and he feels achieved when he sees patients make steady recoveries. From this experience, I also learned that occupational therapy offers a diverse number of avenues for employment. I was pleased to know that I can specialize in a specific area if I desire to do so in the
This article discusses the basic understanding of what occupational therapy is and what it the
Townsend & Polatajko (2007) state that “Occupational therapy is the art and science of enabling engagement in everyday living, through occupation; of enabling people to perform the occupations that foster health and well-being; and of enabling a just and inclusive society so that all people may participate to their potential in the daily occupations of life”.
"Occupational Therapy." KidsHealth. Ed. Wendy Harron. The Nemours Foundation, 01 July 2010. Web. 01 Mar. 2014 .
Occupational science in practice enables therapists to understand the patient as an occupational being, thus enabling the therapist to implement assessments that are occupationally focused, especially during the early stages of the occupational therapy process.
My work experience helped me confirm my interest when I got to see the roles of Occupational Therapists first hand. I was able to spend time shadowing an individual from a special needs school, which moved onto being able to run sessions with minimal help in gross and fine motor skills with the children who have a wide range of disabilities. It was a great experience to observe how everyday objects could be used to help build up these skills and how much the children enjoyed the activities. I was also able to shadow an OT within the Early Intervention in Psychosis team, this
Occupational therapy was based off of psychology; we evolved from treating mentally ill patients with isolation as an efficient treatment plan. We must never forget we are known to be “the art and science of helping people do the day-to-day activities that are important and meaningful to their health and well being through engagement in valued occupations” (Crepeau, Cohn, & Schell, 2008). To other professional disciplines this article explains the difference between each of us, yet can also express our relation to one another. The basic goal of all therapeutic disciplines is to better our clients life, through physical, speech or occupational therapy. Every discipline targets different goals, may it be body mechanics, reducing a stutter or buttoning a shirt, at the end of the day our clients well being may it be through science, art or both is all that matters. To the occupational therapy field this article means progress for what we do. Reading this article today in the year 2015 did not seem like old information to me, it is still relevant, I am proud that our field is not only evolving with contemporary time but it is also maintaining its
An occupational therapist becomes trained and licensed in the healthcare profession and obtains the credentials to make a complete assessment of the impact of an injury that is causing the activities of the patient at home and in work situations
I find occupational therapy to pique my drive to teach people valuable life skills as well as learn from those people and their experiences. Being an occupational therapist would allow me to have one-on-one interactions with patients and establish meaningful relationships over the course of time. It would also give me the dutiful privilege and responsibility of instilling confidence in others and helping them realize their full potential in self-suffiency. All of my personal experiences, challenges, educational backgrounds, and professional interactions have guided me toward pursuing my goals of gaining experience working in all populations, enabling patients to thrive in their daily lifestyle, and spread public awareness of what OT has
Strong people skills are a must for one with a career in occupational therapy. Working with people is a daily task and often times these people will be dealing with some troublesome aspect of their lives. An OT must also have great problem solving skills. One must be able to talk through problems with a client as w...
According to the United States Department of Labor they explain that, “Occupational therapists treat patients with illnesses, Injuries, and disabilities through therapeutic use of everyday activities. Occupational therapist help patients recover, improve, and develop the skills
Occupational therapy has a multifaceted nature providing endless opportunities to serve a wide range of people within many environments, which is just one of the reasons I love this occupation. My long term goals enlist the desire to maximize my knowledge and abilities to care and supplement the lives of anyone that may cross my path in this career. I have seen occupational therapy positively impact the lives of people around me, and I strive to be a bigger role on the team helping make that happen.
Occupational therapy is a form of therapy for those recuperating from physical or mental illness that encourages rehabilitation through the performance of activities required of daily life (O’Brien & Hussey, 2012; American Occupational Therapy Association [AOTA], 2014). The goal of OT intervention is to increase the ability of the client to engage in everyday activities, for example, feeding, dressing, bathing, leisure, work, education (O’Brien & Hussey, 2012; & AOTA, 2014).
Occupational therapists collaborate with families, schools, and the community, to ensure that their clients are receiving the extra support they need to either improve, maintain, or regain skills for a life of independence. ("Benefits, Outcomes and Drawbacks of Occupational