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what do Occupational Therapists do on a day-to-day basis?
what do Occupational Therapists do on a day-to-day basis? I'm Interested
in this occupation but I will like to no more info about it
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Raquel’s Answer
Hello! I'm not an occupational therapist but have worked with them in two different settings. I know that there is a huge variety of work that you can do, and I would suggest reaching out to a OT school near you to ask them, I'm sure they'd love to give you all the information on the field! In the hospital setting, I worked with OT who would help people be more prepared to care for themselves safely once they left the hospital. For example, if someone had hip surgery, they would provide the patient with assistive tools for putting their shoes on at home. They also do exercises with people to increase independence and quality of life. I also worked with OT in a special needs school, and they were awesome! They worked with all the kids who had a disability and helped them with walking/sitting, range of motion, and sensory activities. They would also work with the kids on practical skills like cutting and coloring. They worked very closely with physical and speech therapists. I hope that helps a bit, best of luck!
Thank you, Raquel for the advice.
Anthony
Alyssa, I literally explained that I am not an OT and provided my experiences working with OT. You can easily provide your own answer without attacking someone else’s.
Raquel Davis
Hi Raquel, I've gone ahead and changed the other pro's comment into an answer! I don't think they were trying to attack your answer. I think they commented on your answer because you mentioned reaching out to an OT/OT school. Thank you for your answer!
Gurpreet Lally, Admin
Updated
Shelby’s Answer
Hi Anthony,
I first want to say choosing a career in OT is great if you enjoy working with people, problem solving and consider yourself a life long learner. I graduated recently with my doctorate in occupational therapy and have been practicing for about a year now. There are so many settings that you can work in as an OT, with a variety of patient populations and diagnoses. Your day to day can look very different depending on the setting you chose but at the core of the profession you are treating your clients from a holistic perspective, which means you're taking into account all parts of an individual (physical, mental, environment, situational factors etc.). Interventions can focus on advocating for your clients, helping clients be functional/successful in their every day activities, improving quality of life , and promoting independence. I have worked in an outpatient pediatric clinic where the sessions last ~45 min and interventions focused more on sensory integration/regulation through proprioceptive, vestibular, tactile and movement input. Now I am working in a school based position where I am involved in evaluating students and providing treatment through direct or indirect (consultative) services. This area of practice is more focused helping students access their curriculum, following routines of the classroom, fine motor, visual motor skills, executive functioning, sensory/regulation, and self help (can they open containers in the lunchroom?). This area can be challenging because you are often the voice of the child who is educating staff on how to modify and adapt the school environment and provide necessary supports in order for the child to be successful. Depending on your caseload (mine is about 40 -50 students, seen roughly 25 min/week) there can be a lot of meetings so having good communication skills are important. I also have experience in hand therapy, outpatient adult rehab, inpatient, and SNF and enjoyed all of them. Thats the one thing that I love about OT you can move around and try out different practice areas until you find a good fit for you. I am happy to answer any more questions you may have!
I first want to say choosing a career in OT is great if you enjoy working with people, problem solving and consider yourself a life long learner. I graduated recently with my doctorate in occupational therapy and have been practicing for about a year now. There are so many settings that you can work in as an OT, with a variety of patient populations and diagnoses. Your day to day can look very different depending on the setting you chose but at the core of the profession you are treating your clients from a holistic perspective, which means you're taking into account all parts of an individual (physical, mental, environment, situational factors etc.). Interventions can focus on advocating for your clients, helping clients be functional/successful in their every day activities, improving quality of life , and promoting independence. I have worked in an outpatient pediatric clinic where the sessions last ~45 min and interventions focused more on sensory integration/regulation through proprioceptive, vestibular, tactile and movement input. Now I am working in a school based position where I am involved in evaluating students and providing treatment through direct or indirect (consultative) services. This area of practice is more focused helping students access their curriculum, following routines of the classroom, fine motor, visual motor skills, executive functioning, sensory/regulation, and self help (can they open containers in the lunchroom?). This area can be challenging because you are often the voice of the child who is educating staff on how to modify and adapt the school environment and provide necessary supports in order for the child to be successful. Depending on your caseload (mine is about 40 -50 students, seen roughly 25 min/week) there can be a lot of meetings so having good communication skills are important. I also have experience in hand therapy, outpatient adult rehab, inpatient, and SNF and enjoyed all of them. Thats the one thing that I love about OT you can move around and try out different practice areas until you find a good fit for you. I am happy to answer any more questions you may have!
Updated
Alyssa’s Answer
Hi, I’m an OT and I’ll tell you this is a loaded answer because there are SO many paths you can take— which is what I love about being an OT. In my position at a long term acute care- I work with adults with TBIs, SCIs, on ventilators, with LVADs, organ transplants and going through cancer treatments work towards independence in self care, mobility and other daily activities.
I have 6-12 patients on my caseload, but see them anywhere from 1 to 5 times a week depending on their needs. I additionally have experience in skilled nursing facility and intensive rehab settings. I have my doctorate, and I’m a certified brain injury specialist and am happy to answer any more questions you have!
I have 6-12 patients on my caseload, but see them anywhere from 1 to 5 times a week depending on their needs. I additionally have experience in skilled nursing facility and intensive rehab settings. I have my doctorate, and I’m a certified brain injury specialist and am happy to answer any more questions you have!
Updated
Beth’s Answer
Hi Anthony,
I am a Physical therapist who works with occupational therapists all the time.
A couple things you need to know - occupational therapists work with people to restore activities which occupy their time - like bathing, dressing, writing, using your hands to do things like cooking or sewing.They are the hand and arm function experts.
You need a masters degree to practice (6-7 years of school). There is also an occupational therapist assistant they need 2-4 years of school.
OT’s work in a variety of settings from school districts to hospitals, rehabilitation settings, outpatient clinics, and psychiatric settings. OT’s work with all ages from NICU babies to geriatrics.
Your typical day will vary depending on your setting. In the hospital and rehab setting you usually work 8-430 with 30 minutes for lunch. You will see 6-10 patients in a day, document what you did and progress they made in the medical record. You may have a staff meeting and a patient update meeting too. There are weekend hours. Sometimes you might work the weekend and have a weekday off, some people work just weekends for extra money.
Outpatient clinics tend to be open 7 am- 7 pm. You might work 3, 12 hour shifts, or choose a 7-3 or 11-7 shift.
School jobs work the school schedule 8-3 daily, weekends and holidays off. I have lots of friends who work for the school, then come to work at the hospital in holidays and summers for extra money.
You can also work in home health - treating people in their homes because they can’t get out easily. You set your own schedule with the client, it could be weekends or evenings or mid day depending on the need. You will have to drive to each home, the company pays mileage but usually not time. You might see 4-5 clients in a day, drive 100 miles and do your paperwork at a Starbucks between cases.
Your type of client is incredibly varied also. You might help a deeply depressed client play a game that makes him happy, you may help a cancer patient regain the motion in her shoulder, teach an amputee how to eat left handed, help a stoke patient tie his shoes, help a premature infant reach for toys and much more. Therapy is an awesome job! You really make a difference in someone’s life and help them return to living a better life after injury or illness.
Explore the American Occupational Therapy website for career and university information
Volunteer at a nursing home or special Olympics to see OT’s in action
Ask to shadow an OT for a day.
Keep your grades up, getting into the graduate school program is competitive
I am a Physical therapist who works with occupational therapists all the time.
A couple things you need to know - occupational therapists work with people to restore activities which occupy their time - like bathing, dressing, writing, using your hands to do things like cooking or sewing.They are the hand and arm function experts.
You need a masters degree to practice (6-7 years of school). There is also an occupational therapist assistant they need 2-4 years of school.
OT’s work in a variety of settings from school districts to hospitals, rehabilitation settings, outpatient clinics, and psychiatric settings. OT’s work with all ages from NICU babies to geriatrics.
Your typical day will vary depending on your setting. In the hospital and rehab setting you usually work 8-430 with 30 minutes for lunch. You will see 6-10 patients in a day, document what you did and progress they made in the medical record. You may have a staff meeting and a patient update meeting too. There are weekend hours. Sometimes you might work the weekend and have a weekday off, some people work just weekends for extra money.
Outpatient clinics tend to be open 7 am- 7 pm. You might work 3, 12 hour shifts, or choose a 7-3 or 11-7 shift.
School jobs work the school schedule 8-3 daily, weekends and holidays off. I have lots of friends who work for the school, then come to work at the hospital in holidays and summers for extra money.
You can also work in home health - treating people in their homes because they can’t get out easily. You set your own schedule with the client, it could be weekends or evenings or mid day depending on the need. You will have to drive to each home, the company pays mileage but usually not time. You might see 4-5 clients in a day, drive 100 miles and do your paperwork at a Starbucks between cases.
Your type of client is incredibly varied also. You might help a deeply depressed client play a game that makes him happy, you may help a cancer patient regain the motion in her shoulder, teach an amputee how to eat left handed, help a stoke patient tie his shoes, help a premature infant reach for toys and much more. Therapy is an awesome job! You really make a difference in someone’s life and help them return to living a better life after injury or illness.
Beth recommends the following next steps:
Updated
Kelsey’s Answer
Hello!
I am an OT and I work at a hospital in the inpatient rehab setting. Overall, occupational therapists help people to gain or maintain independence in whatever activities/roles/tasks that occupy their time (called occupations). This can be anything from basic self-care (dressing, bathing, toileting) to home maintenance, child care, pet care, leisure and work. OT is a very broad field and is not limited to the definition I just provided. OTs can work with people from all walks of life: from infancy to older adults, from physical disabilities to mental illness and cognitive dysfunction.
I will provide what I do on a daily basis in my setting of inpatient rehab. This may look slightly different from OTs working in other settings but there are general similarities. Throughout the day we basically see patients back-back for treatment sessions, evaluations, and discharges. These can be anywhere from 30min to 90min, with a break for lunch. Much of the time, we collaborate on a team with other professionals such as nurses, doctors, case managers, physical therapists and speech language pathologists to overcome barriers to patients safely functioning at home.
I hope all of this helps! Please see my recommendations for next steps below, and good luck to you on finding a career that works for you.
Shadow OTs in MULTIPLE different settings (hospital, outpatient, schools, skilled nursing facilities, community-based, etc.)
Ask to have an informational interview (over the phone, in person, etc.) with an OT and come with questions
Apply to work as a rehab tech or patient care tech to gain exposure in health care
Even shadow other professionals, like PT, SLP, RN, etc. to really determine where you see yourself
I am an OT and I work at a hospital in the inpatient rehab setting. Overall, occupational therapists help people to gain or maintain independence in whatever activities/roles/tasks that occupy their time (called occupations). This can be anything from basic self-care (dressing, bathing, toileting) to home maintenance, child care, pet care, leisure and work. OT is a very broad field and is not limited to the definition I just provided. OTs can work with people from all walks of life: from infancy to older adults, from physical disabilities to mental illness and cognitive dysfunction.
I will provide what I do on a daily basis in my setting of inpatient rehab. This may look slightly different from OTs working in other settings but there are general similarities. Throughout the day we basically see patients back-back for treatment sessions, evaluations, and discharges. These can be anywhere from 30min to 90min, with a break for lunch. Much of the time, we collaborate on a team with other professionals such as nurses, doctors, case managers, physical therapists and speech language pathologists to overcome barriers to patients safely functioning at home.
I hope all of this helps! Please see my recommendations for next steps below, and good luck to you on finding a career that works for you.
Kelsey recommends the following next steps:
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Katherine’s Answer
The role truly varies based on the environment. To put it simply, their duties involve caring for patients, interacting with patients, their families, and a team of various professionals. They are also responsible for completing documentation and attending meetings. Moreover, they often need to make quick decisions.