Occupational Therapist – Helping people live healthier

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Do you feel happy and satisfied while helping people improve their lives – especially when they are facing health challenges? Are you passionate about science and love working with people? Are you a creative and holistic thinker who is at your best while helping people live their best lives?

If the answers to the above questions are yes, then a career as an occupational therapist is the best option for you.

There are many reasons like accidents and surgeries, congenital conditions, mental or emotional issues, developmental disabilities; age-related factors and illness which are preventing people live their fully functioning normal lives without daily assistance or help. No person in the world deserves to waste the good years of their lives without help. In this regard, an occupational therapist comes to the rescue.


Who is an occupational therapist?

An occupational therapist (OT) is a health care professional who works with a wide range of people like the injured, ill or disabled people through using therapeutic ways to re-engage people in their daily and meaningful activities. They focus mainly on the affected people’s education, functional training and their participation in everyday activities rather than solely relying on medication and surgical procedures.

They develop exercises and help people walk through the steps to complete them, help them in improving their life skills until they reach full recovery.

OT determines what life activities are meaningful and important to the patient and with the help of the family and caretakers, they develop strategies to help the patients participate in those activities. These activities can be cooking, bathing and dressing without any intervention or participating in community club’s activities.

The common places where OTs work can be schools, patients’ home, private clinics, nursing homes or nursing facilities, hospitals and inpatient centres.

occupational therapist


Duties of Operational Therapist

An OT may do the following duties:

  • Review the patient’s medical histories and interview them by asking relevant questions and ask them to perform certain tasks.
  • Evaluation and examination of patient’s needs and conditions.
  • Develop a customized treatment plan for the patients, identifying the goals and designing activities that will help the patient in reaching his goals.
  • Educate a patient’s family members and employer about how to care for the patient and for his accommodation.
  • Examining a patient’s home and office and based on the patient’s condition suggest improvements like labelling of kitchen equipment for aged people with a memory problem.
  • Recommendation of specialized equipment like wheelchair and aids for eating and guide patients for using the same.
  • Assessment and recording of patients’ activities and progress for evaluation of patients, for billing purposes and for providing information to physicians and other healthcare professionals.


Educational Requirements of OTs

  • The initial step to becoming an OT is getting qualified to be admitted to an OT school. The interested applicant has to complete his high school degree and an undergraduate degree with the assigned prerequisite coursework.
  • While studying for your undergraduate degree, it is essential to get your volunteer or observation hours in different settings for various programs to qualify for OT school and probably take the GRE test.
  • Another thing you need to decide is to pursue a Master of Operational Therapy (MOT) or Doctorate of Operational Therapy (DOT).
  • After successful completion of occupation therapy degree, the candidate has to qualify for the National Board Exam (NBCOT).
  • Apply for the license in the area you wish to practice. Get your selected program get the approval of AOTA.
occupational therapist


Occupational Therapy Organizations & Associations


Various occupational career practices for an OT

Certified OTs can work within these occupational areas that can be with:

  • Children and Youth
  • Productive Aging
  • Health and Wellness
  • Mental Health
  • Work and Industry
  • Rehabilitation and disability


Salary and Job Outlook

Generally, an occupational therapist makes for a comfortable living. The average salary of an OT is $82,000 annually which can be calculated to $39 per hour.

Occupational Therapy is one of the top healthcare fields and the OTs are in great demand. According to report by Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the employment for OTs will grow by 32% between 2019 and 2029.

According to Center for Disease Control and Prevention Statistics, the demand for OTs will get higher with:

  • Children with developmental disabilities
  • People suffering from diabetes and stroke
  • Old people of ages 65 and older
  • Obese people
occupational therapist

Job opportunities will be good for certified occupational therapists in all kinds of settings like hospitals, rehabilitation and orthopedic (for elderly) settings. OTs with subject specialization will have better job prospects.

– Samiya Firdous

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