I Walk Slowly, But I Never Walk Backward

As occupational therapy services diversified, serving a variety of clients in many different settings and with societal influences, the field began to evolve. During the 1990s occupational therapists began to shift away from reductionist medical model toward a more holistic client-centered approach. Services focused on enhancing individuals’ quality of life across the lifespan meaning before, during, and after therapeutic intervention. The profession began to better acknowledge the value of client education, injury and illness prevention, health screening, and health maintenance (Cole & Tufano, 2008). The field created more preventative initiatives, and focused services on improving quality of life and optimizing the independence of

The career path I have chosen to enter upon the completion of my college major is in Occupational Therapy Assistance. Occupational Therapy is the medical treatment for people who are limited by mental health problems, the aging process, physical injury or illness, and learning or developmental disabilities. An Occupational Therapist Assistant, or OTA, is the assistant to the Occupational Therapists, or OT, and assists him or her in providing Occupational Therapy treatments and procedures. An Occupational Therapist Assistant may also assist in the development of treatment plans, direct activity programs, carry out routine functions, and document the progress of patients’ treatments. OTs and OTAs work together with their patients, and their goal is have their patients regain the highest ability of functionality in their daily lives.

As an Occupational Therapy Assistant, I will work alongside an Occupational Therapist and work directly with patients. The difference between an OT and an OTA is that OT’s set up treatment plans and perform medical assessments while OTA’s carry out the treatment plans with the patients. In volunteering at rehab clinics, I’ve learned that Occupational Therapists often spend much of their time dealing with paperwork while OTA’s are performing more hands on work with people. Their day includes helping patients in performing rehabilitative exercises within a treatment plan. Occupational Therapy Assistants help people to regain their ability to perform activities of daily living, or ADL’s. These are the core aspects which

I want to become an Occupational Therapist Assistant because I have always dreamed of helping people young and old, and occupational therapy is perfect for that. I want to help people gain their independence and confidence back whether they are recovering from things like a stroke or an illness / disease. Each person’s situation is unique: some may live with someone who is able to help the patient out or they may not have anyone to help them so you have to adjust your plans to fit each individual. Doing that may be difficult at times but I have been through numerous situations that required hard work and I was able to complete them. Independence and confidence are important aspects of life, especially when it comes to day-to-day living. There will be people who can make a full recovery and will be able to live

To be able to participate in one 's own life, to do the things we want to do, and to competently perform the activities that form part of our daily, weekly or monthly routines, is a common goal for most people.  This not only includes taking part in the basic activities of self-care, such as grooming and dressing, but also extends to our work and leisure activities.  It is through doing things that we learn and develop as human beings.  The occupational therapy profession believes that being prevented or hindered in some way from participating in the activities that are important to us could adversely affect our health and wellbeing.

I’m currently working in the health care field as a Patient Care Technician. My job is to assist patient with their ADL’s, and becoming a therapist, I will encourage patients and help them to function Independently with their ADL’s. I’m very nervous and excited about becoming an occupational therapist assistance because I’m fearful of different challenges that will come being a therapist. Can I perform my duties successful as a therapist? I’m I going to feel like a failure when a patient is not progressing the way they should? I’m also feeling excited because, I will get the chance, to make a difference in someone’s life, by helping them function back to their occupations independently as possible before their injury, disabilities, or

I believe that my personal and professional growth and behavior as a physical therapist is of utmost importance. I base this firstly on my strong connection to those in society who are disadvantaged when it comes to physical therapy, and also on the movement system, movement being “the key to optimal living and quality of life for all people that extends beyond health to every person’s ability to participate in and contribute to society” (American Physical Therapy Association, 2013). This perspective, I believe, is aligned perfectly with the vision statement for the physical therapy profession – to transform society through optimization of movement to improve the human experience (APTA, 2013). After reviewing the vision statement, I strongly believe it will act as my guide by strengthening compassion, reinforcing advocacy, improving quality of service, and strengthening cohesion.

In the daily life of an Occupational Therapy assistant, it consists of the person actually being involved with the patient. It’s a lot of hands on, and it’s very challenging when it comes to your own body, because

With the variety of majors and interests college offers, the decision of choosing a career holds a heavy weight. There are many paths one can go to have a successful, fulfilling job for the rest of their lives; this is where college can explore a person’s likes and dislikes. From taking taking the self-assessment, it resulted careers that revolve around medical and/or as educators to help others. These choices seemed very very accurate and possible that I want to pursue. I have always been passionate of caring for others in some source. The four careers that I decided to further research are: occupational therapist, social and human service assistant, pharmacist, and veterinarian.

Occupational Therapy is a health, wellness, and rehabilitation profession devoted to the development of performance and function across their lifetime so that individuals can live their life to the fullest. The holistic approach taken by occupational therapy practitioners is particularly effective in the areas of wellness, health promotion, and prevention. The practice of occupational therapy can take place in health care and education settings, and in community based agencies and organizations. The timing is excellent for occupational therapy in the area of wellness and prevention. Occupational Therapy practitioners administer habilitation and rehabilitation services, which are among the fundamentals health benefits of the

From a young age, I have always wanted to understand other people’s thoughts and feelings. As I have grown older, I have grown even more curious about not only understanding people, but learning how to help them. With this guiding me, my future career goal is to become an Occupational Therapist. Occupational Therapists work with a wide variety of people to help them overcome obstacles in their lives in order to achieve a better quality of life. I specifically hope to work with young children, adolescents, and teens who suffer from emotional, mental, or cognitive impairments. This is due to growing up in a family who fostered challenged children, having siblings with their own challenges, and having many young friends who could have benefitted

I believe that everybody deserves to have a happy and comfortable life and that being able to complete every task effectively plays a major part in achieving this. I think as humans we tend to take everyday tasks for granted as it we complete these subconsciously without ever considering the impact it would have on our lives if we were unable to complete them. I want to be an Occupational Therapist as I believe that adjusting a person’s environment and teaching them necessary skills makes a huge positive impact to their life. I am also passionate about seeing people grow in strength to achieve their full potential no matter what challenges they face.

The success of a therapy relies on the therapists’ skills, knowledge and personal attributes. To be effective, one must have a background in anatomy, assistive technology and patient care (“How to Obtain Your Occupational Therapy Degree,” n.d.). Other desirable attributes include compassion, flexibility, patience, flexibility, as well as technical and social skills like communication, writing and interpersonal skills. These skills and traits are especially important to have since occupational therapy is patient centered.

I have chosen occupational therapy as a career because of my family experiences, volunteer work, and my personal skills and qualities that I believe will contribute to my success as an occupational therapist. Occupational therapy has interested me from a young age because my mom, who is an occupational therapist, inspired me and instilled a passion within me for helping others. I have always been interested in pursuing a career in the health field where I am able to put my sills to great use in order to help other people. I am also drawn to occupational therapy because of the amount of variety within the profession. I love that occupational therapists have a wide range of populations to work with, as well as settings and specializations that they can chose to pursue. I also like how holistic and patient centered the therapist’s approach is while helping patients. For me, the biggest reason that I would to be an occupation therapist is because of the opportunity

Occupational therapy has been in the process of continued development since the 1900’s. With several contributors helping to build the groundwork for creating the awareness needed to bring occupational therapy into the field of health care. Continued research is contributing to the ongoing significance of how occupational therapy is a vital aspect in promoting increased independences in all aspects of healthcare. (Willard, Schell, 2014) With the incorporation of “Occupational Therapy Practice Framework Domain and Process (3rd ed.)” helps creates the foundation for occupational therapy clinicians as well as other health care providers in facilitating the core believe of occupational and the relationship of health and occupation. (AOTA 2014) Therefore, providing a uniform outline of the various aspects of each individual and how they are interconnected to create the foundation of each individual. With a greater understanding of the foundations of that induvial, the clinician can then facilitate the best therapeutic treatment plan for that individual to achieve their personal goals with unified foundations of care.