Occupational Therapist Research Paper

Fundamentally, occupational therapy is about using meaningful activities to improve a person’s quality of life. It is the role of the therapist to meet people where they are in order to help them reach their fullest potential. Across the board, occupational therapy is about holistic functionality. That is, treating the whole person, not just a set of symptoms, in a way that is evidence-based and supported. Not a single component of the person is neglected; treatments take into account the physical, emotional, and psychological well-being of the patient, while engaging them in the healing, therapeutic power of occupation.

I chose occupational therapy because it helps people with special needs or rehab stuff to help them get better and get through school or work days. What do occupational therapists do and who do they work with? “Occupational therapy services typically include: an individualized evaluation, during which the client/family and occupational therapist determine the person’s goals, customized intervention to improve the person’s ability to perform daily activities and reach the goals, and an outcomes evaluation to ensure that the goals are being met and/or make changes to the intervention plan (ACTA).” Occupational therapist often work with younger kids with special needs to help them make it through school but sometimes they work with

Occupational Therapy is a type of therapy that works on everyday skills like writing and reading, and also they help with kids who need assistance walking and talking. Most occupational therapists can be found in schools, doctors, and hospitals. Their goal is to help kids live a better and more effective life. School occupational therapist, like the one I am job shadowing, she works with mostly with young special needs children ages ranging 4 to 6 years old. Occupational therapy can be found with all ages ranging from young to old. I personally would love to pursue a career as an occupational therapist that works with smaller kids and special needs kids in schools.

“Admission to graduate programs in occupational therapy generally requires a bachelor’s degree and specific coursework, including biology and physiology” ("Summary"). A student in college is required to have a master's and bachelor's degree for occupational therapy, this could take about 5 years if they take extra programs that require them to be a occupational therapist. “The American Occupational Therapy Association also offers a number of certifications for therapists who want to demonstrate their advanced level of knowledge in a specialty area, such as pediatrics, gerontology, driving and community mobility or low vision” ("ExploreHealthCareers.org."). These therapists have to have compassion so they understand what the patients is going through. Occupational therapist also have to have communication skills and interpersonal skills so they earn trust from their patient. Flexibility is a very good quality to have because occupational therapist have to be able to work around and with the patient's life schedule. The most important quality to have is patience, they have to be able to know how slow they are going to be and just make sure they're not rushing their

When people are unable to participate in the daily activities of their occupation, Brown and Hollis (2013) reported that people can experience a brief pause or disruption in their normal activities, a deprived state of activity that can severely restrict social, cultural, or personal engagements, or create an imbalance when a person becomes “unoccupied, under occupied, or over occupied” (p.1246). Eventually, any of these lapses in functioning can create or intensify other physical or mental issues. Santrock (2012) expressed that occupational therapists “help people regain, develop, and build skills that are important for independent functioning, health, well-being, security, and happiness” (p.45). Perhaps occupational therapy on the whole can be described as utilizing multiple techniques to help different people with one or several distinct impairments that hinder them at various times in their life. Kronenberg and Pollard (2006) stated that “occupational therapy is said to be based

If you find yourself unable to participate in activities you value, a visit with an occupational therapist can help educate you on options. With consistent hard work and adaptive methods, you can learn or recover functional abilities. OTs work to improve quality of life for patients by helping them regain as much independence as possible. In occupational therapy, the question is not only “What is the matter with you?”, but “What matters to you?” A creative and caring occupational therapist can treat injuries and provide ideas to facilitate high-quality independent

As occupational therapy practitioners we are trained to help clients look critically at everyday routines and examine how their affected state of health impacts their ability to carry out what is important to them. However, occupational therapist goes beyond simply helping the patient recognize the problem. They prepare the client with skills necessary through various resources to fill the void in their abilities so that they can live their life with the highest level of satisfaction. This mindset allows occupational therapist to help individuals like Mrs. Ingliss to engage in the necessary and sought after life activities important for her life satisfaction.

Occupational therapy (OT) promotes health and well being by offering people the opportunity to perform meaningful and purposeful activities. OT's work with various individuals who may be limited by physical injury or illness, psychosocial dysfunction, developmental or learning disabilities, cultural or poverty differences or the ageing process.The role of the OT in such cases serves the purpose of maximising independence, preventing disability and maintaining health (Turner A, Foster M, Johnson S E 1996). OT interventions cover key elements such as occupational performance, occupational choice and occupational identity. Identity is key to human functioning in that it is how a people identify themselves, their future aspirations, their roles

Before I started Introduction to Occupational Therapy (OT), I had a vague understanding of what I thought it encompassed, but only on an aspect of some of the services provided. I had an understanding that OT was used to assist people in regaining abilities to help them out in there life where they were having a problem. By this I only understood the problems to be from a recent surgery, or medical problem encountered, such as a stroke. I did not know about the history of OT practices or about any of the organizational structuring within OT. Through this first unit, I have been able to learn how OT is utilized for not only the most identifiable problem it seems a person may be experiencing, but how OT is utilized on a holistic approach to help

Within completing my Master’s degree in Sports and Health Science, and a concentration in Exercise Science and human development, the goal for me is to take the board certification exam for Occupational Therapy. Occupational Therapy is a form of therapy for those recuperating from physical or mental illness that encourages rehabilitation through the performance of activities required in daily life. Thus, I almost think of it as the bridge that allows a person to move from being injured back into their daily life. More so, while physical therapy works with strengthening the muscles, tendons, and ligaments of an injury, Occupational Therapy tends to work with how you would twist differently, turn differently, move differently, etc.

I am extremely excited to pursue occupational therapy as a career, I hope that this will further my knowledge, clinical experience and additional skills which will enable me to perform both accurately and effectively. Once I complete the course I aim to provide assistance to people so that they may lead an independent life that is rich and

This program, along with the National Certification Test and state license, is all that is needed in order to enter the field and begin working as an Occupational Therapist (OT). The program is described has being very hands on from the beginning, and is made up of six different areas including, occupation, OT practice, professional development, practice out in the community, research, and practice in the general field. The degree is a two-year program and is comprised of the history, analysis, research, and functional work all within Occupational Therapy as a profession. Unlike most OT schools, this program focuses on teaching about the lifespans as an approach to OT, whereas most other school have different methods of approaching Occupational Therapy. The website then goes on to provide information on the specific curriculum, educational tracks, application requirements, and the intended learning outcomes of the program. Overall the website gives a good overview and resources to the program so a first-time visitor could find out about answers they would have questions about the

My ideal job is to become an occupational therapist and work with patients of all ages in a rehabilitation center. I want to work directly with individuals to help them learn and/or regain the ability to perform daily activities. Occupational therapists evaluate a patient’s current condition/needs and develops a therapeutic treatment plan to help them improve skills needed for everyday living. As an OT, I want to help patients overcome physical, developmental, or emotional impairments by teaching them skills such as fine motor skills, motor control and organization, motor coordination, visual perceptual skills, sensory modulation, and body awareness. I want to work with individuals to help them learn/regain underlying skills as well as address

As an occupational therapist, I have been involved in caring for patients in a variety of conditions. An occupational therapist is a medical practitioner who is eager to encourage individuals with disability or inability to live to its fullest. They have the specific knowledge and skills to enhance the individual, who facing difficulties, knowledge about the disease, show them how to manage pain and promote their ability to participate in meaningful activities (work) and to allow patients to do things that they are in accordance with the requirements and needs of each.ograms that enhance their Occupational therapists are professionals in creating or modifying the environment which allows the customer to participate in their

In Occupational Therapy (OT), ideas and theories go through various modifications. Practitioners dealing with Occupational therapy use craft as therapeutic mechanisms because people do feel that they are capable of accomplishing anything when they prove to themselves that they can do an art and compete it on their own. Crafts vary in their purpose; some deal with self care such as cooking, sewing, cleaning, and mending. Other crafts are generally meant to deal with a dysfunction faced compared to other crafts. An assessment of theoretic crafts to determine if it fits the best interests of a patient is through looking at the treatment goals of OT to a specific individual.