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Links between occupation, health, and wellbeing
Occupational therapy practice framework
The importance of occupational therapy
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An occupational therapist is a health care practitioner who analyses the impact of occupation on health and quality of life in order to restore a functional interaction between the person and the environment. Occupational therapists use a client-centered model to work with people of all ages, from infancy through midlife to old age, to enable them to face physical, emotional or social barriers. (School of Physical and Occupational Therapy McGill University,
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
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
Michael is a 56 year old male who lives alone in a small tin shed in the middle of the bush in central Queensland. He has no children, no partner and lives by himself. During the day he spends his time sleeping on the couch or doing chores around the property. If he isn’t asleep, he requires a stimuli to remain occupied. When he was a young boy, he was a very calm child with a great sense of humour. His physical health was perfect with good energy levels. When he was sexually abused at the age of 8, by his grandfather, these characteristics started to change. From the age of 16 he was having regular breakdowns in his thinking and emotional responses. Michael was constantly feeling irritable and having trouble sleeping with frequent nightmares. As the years went by his attitude was extremely negative which led on to him being withdrawn from his family and friends. During his last year of high school, he started to regularly use marijuana. He would experience countless amounts of paranoia episodes where he would hear voices and thought he was being spied on. At the age of 45 he was fin...
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...
The Model of Human Occupation is an occupation-focused theoretical model that is categorized into concepts that examine the person’s volition, habituation, and performance capacity when participating in an occupation (Forsyth et al, 2014, p. 506). By applying MOHO to my community partner Sunshine, the dynamics of how his personal factors and environmental factors influence his overall occupational participation are analyzed.
Occupational therapy is projected to be one of the fastest growing jobs in the upcoming years. This job has the potential to be an exciting career for someone interested in a healthcare profession. One of the rewarding things about being an occupational therapist is the ability to help people reach their goals while earning a good salary and benefits. Occupational therapists help people across their lifespan by increasing their range of motion on their joints and helping people get back to their daily lives. Learning more about the origins of occupational therapy, what an occupational therapist does, how to become an occupational therapist, and what the job outlook is for this career may help someone make an informed decision about their potential career path.
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 career focused on helping people who have or are at risk for developing an illness, injury, disease, disorder, condition, impairment, disability, activity limitation, or participation restriction. An OT’s scope of practice may involve addressing “the physical, cognitive, psychosocial, sensory, and other aspects of performance to support engagement in everyday life activities that affect health, well-being, and quality of life” (Definition of Occupational Therapy Practice for the AOTA Model Practice Act, 2017). I don’t feel like occupational therapy is the right career for me because I feel like I lack certain characteristics that someone in this profession should have.
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 made its first appearance in a modern-day setting during the 18th century; however, occupational therapy dates back to 100 BC. The United States medical system adopted occupational therapy in the 19th century. In 1910, occupational therapy became a realized profession. Then, the main focus was working with individuals to get them to a fully functional state. Around 1930, standards of practice were developed for occupational therapists (OT’s). The career continues to evolve and change as new illnesses and disabilities arise. Even with all the changes, the main focus remains intact: helping people.
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
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
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.
The experience I had interviewing for the first time was extremely daunting but at the same time, eye-opening as it made me realise how essential a skill like this is to have and practice as an occupational therapist. It is a skill that requires time to develop and to craft, but is vital in building a therapeutic alliance between the client and the therapist. I carried out two different interviews, The Occupational Circumstances Assessment Interview Rating Scale (OCAIRS) and Canadian Occupational Performance Model (COPM), as the interviewer and also acted as the interviewee so I could gain insight into what such an experience would be like from the client’s perspective. The aim of both interviews was to assess the client and assessment proves to be a critical part of the OT process.
The realization of how important the value of occupation and health is in my own life inspires me to help others. I work on maintaining my own health by staying active and productive everyday. Being able to participate in occupations and activities I enjoy is what allows me to live a fulfilling and satisfying life. Occupational therapy appeals to me because it helps people overcome different obstacles, allow them to accomplish their goals, and participate in activities that are meaningful to them. Along with the physical component of Occupational Therapy, I have also observed the emotional, mental, and behavioral aspect of it. I have always been fascinated with the holistic approach Occupational Therapy takes when providing someone with individualized treatment. I believe physical and mental health is integrated, and it’s essential to look at the whole person in order to understand the needs of an