Occupational Therapy: My OTA Story Jeff Thomsen Keiser University Pembroke Pines September 1, 2017 In the bizarre country we cohabitate, many individuals live with physical disabilities. However, physical abnormalities are not the only thing that constitutes a disability. According to the Social Security Administration (2013), mental disabilities accounted for about 1/3 of the disability claims. One might ask, “What are the odds of interacting with a person that suffers from a mental illness in America these days?” the National Institute of Mental Health (2015) claims that about one out of every five adults suffers from a mental illness, so pretty good odds. Growing up with a mother who suffers from a mental illness, I learned …show more content…
Massage therapy is the manipulation of soft tissue but means of different stroking techniques (Grosenbach, 2009). So what is occupational therapy then? Occupational therapy is the use of daily activities to improve overall function for individuals to gain back or develop independence (Wagenfeld, 2016). There are many different areas amongst the field such as pediatrics (children), geriatrics (elderly), orthopedics, hippo therapy (large animal), adults, and mental health. Out of all these amazing areas within occupational therapy, mental health hits closest to home. The fact that I was exposed to mental health issues growing up, I felt it is my altruistic obligation to try to be part of the solution rather than do …show more content…
5). Additionally, the outcome had similarities with another case study showing the same result that the occupational therapy intervention improved mental health participants overall well-being (Ikiugu, Nissen, Bellar, Maassen, & Van Peursem, 2017). Several more case studies from a separate study show across the board improvements to individuals’ mental health, most importantly, occupational therapy is not limited to age or gender since the cases ranged from 8 years of age to 78 years both male and female participants (Kannenberg, Amini, & Hartmann, 2016). Since mental health issues have directly influenced my life, I want to do the same and directly influence mental health issues by means of occupational therapy
Becoming an Occupational Therapy Assistant has been an ambition of mine for several years now. After researching, job shadowing, and talking to professionals, I have decided to make Occupation Therapy my career. My passion is to help patients by participating and assisting them in their recovery from injuries and disabilities. My compassionate and caring attitude will be vital assets in pursuing this career. After training in Occupational Therapy, it is motivating for me to know that I will be a part of assisting patients to gain back their independence. Helping others is something that I am passionate about in my career and in my spare time. I have been on several mission trips to Haiti and other places which I have provided care for others in a medical setting.
The Occupational Therapy Practice Framework defines an occupational profile as “the initial step in the evaluation process that provides an understanding of the client’s occupational history and experience, patterns of daily living, interests, values, and needs (2014).” During this process the client’s problems and concerns about daily occupations are identified then the client’s main concerns are determined (American Occupational Therapy Association, 2014). Occupational Therapists strive to be holistic and client-centered, and the occupational profile is one method to ensure treatment takes on these characteristics. During the occupational profile the clients share their priorities based on what is important to them, and the therapist
Occupational therapy is also known as the dynamic and developing healthcare profession that deals with people in ways of regaining their skills required for the every days of life. For a very long time I have always had the desire to achieve my dreams in becoming an occupational therapist. I am very well equipped with creativity, flexibility and the ability to aid people in solving their every day’s life challenges they get involved in. Occupational therapy is quite involving and needs good strategies and skills for one to be successful in the program.
Though occupation usually refers to a job, a person’s occupation is initially determined by what their everyday life consists of. When a person becomes incapable of performing the tasks that they are expected to do in their everyday life due to developmental delays, physical injury, or psychological problems they are often referred to an occupational therapist. Occupational therapists, or OTs, usually have occupational therapy assistants, often called OTAs. The OT gives the OTA a set of objectives to help the patient achieve. Since people go through numerous occupations during the course of their lives, OT’s and OTA’s prov...
Evaluating Process: First, it is important to review R’s occupational profile for progress from the start of occupational therapy. This is done to determine which assessment fits the needs of R and to ensure that the services rendered fits the client's purpose and goal. Some of the information gathered will include: client's occupational history, ADL patterns, needs and goals, environmental issues, and what the client’s limitations. It is important to evaluate the client’s progress to help facilitate the services that the new occupational therapist will continue. In addition, the client's concerns and interests are assessed in a welcome and open interview to attain additional information that R's family may
We were lucky enough to have the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) conference in Salt Lake City this year. The conference brought in around 7,000 OT practitioners and exhibitors. To prepare for the conference, our class compiled a list of businesses that were assessable for people in a wheelchair that would be attending. We split the businesses up between our class, called the businesses assigned, and asked them the following questions: How many stairs are there to enter? Where can someone park? Do they have an accessible bathroom? Is the building wheelchair accessible? What is the distance from the Salt Palace? Is there outdoor and/or indoor seating? Is alcohol served? After collecting this information, we compiled it into an
Occupational therapy has been around for a long time. There is proof of occupational therapy methods for the mentally ill found in ancient times as early as 100 BCE (Quiroga). These therapies included: therapeutic baths, massages, exercise, and music. By medieval times the humane treatment of people considered to be insane was almost non-existent. By the 1900’s, the reform of healthcare for the mentally ill was refreshed through the work of occupational therapy. During World War I, soldiers returning from the field were treated by “reconstruction aides” made up primarily of women trying to “do their part” to help the country during war time. Their treatments included many of the techniques used in modern occupational therapy. After the war many people abandoned these therapeutic practices because the emphasis became more on financial and professional gain rather than helping the war effort. To help bring people back to the profession the American Occupational...
While growing up I had many ideas of what professional career I wanted to obtain, although until recent years, occupational therapy was not even a thought. It was not until my grandmother had a stroke that I even knew what occupational therapy was or entailed. I watched my grandmother participate in therapy leading her to learn how to tie her shoes again, and the things I thought were so simple as to dress herself again. It was during that time as high school graduation was approaching that I realized I wanted to be apart of that. I wanted to have a role helping others learn and exceed as she did because I seen how much joy it brought her. This experience opened my eye to the things we so often take for granted, that some people lose the ability of doing or lack the ability of doing. Throughout her journey of facing and overcoming these problems, it led me to a yearning to pursue this
Mental illness is more common than one would like to believe. In reality, one in five Americans will suffer from a mental disorder in any given year. Though that ratio is about equivalent to more than fifty-four million people, mental illness still remains a shameful and stigmatized topic (National Institute of Mental Health, n.d.). The taboo of mental illness has an extensive and exhausting history, dating back to the beginning of American colonization. It has not been an easy road, to say the least.
My immediate goals after obtaining an Occupational Therapy degree include gaining clinical expertise through a practice of my choice and motivating as many people as I can to achieve their goals. I plan to participate in evidence-based research in order to improve patient outcomes while spreading this knowledge through community education and prevention programs. After establishing myself in the field and gaining the necessary resources, I intend to collaborate with a team of like-minded
Meaningful occupation is the fundamental element of occupational therapy. Griffith et al. (2007) gleaned a...
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
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
It is important for occupational therapists to get involved with individuals who are homeless because the primary focus is to identify the individual’s occupation and then to build their skill set to help them achieve their desired goal. The various models within the occupational therapy field strives to understand and implement ways to restore occupations and task for the individual and help maintain an healthy lifestyle, both physically and mentally. The drive to approach the cause with a holistic approach is one of the major reasons why occupational therapy is beneficial for individuals who are homeless.
As a result of my experience, it is my main goal in life is to help others the same way the team of therapists have helped me. In order to impact the lives of these patients through the career as an OT, I will need to further my education by earning a master’s degree in occupational therapy. Therefore, admission into the Master of Occupational Therapy (MOT) program at Texas Tech University Health Science Center (TTUHSC) will allow me to reach my