Careers in Occupational Therapy
What is an occupational therapist?
Occupational therapists help patients who are often at their most fragile. Occupational therapists combine their knowledge with their compassion to give their patients the strength to participate in every day activities.
Patients who have suffered long term injuries or disabilities-from serious injuries to developmental disabilities-learn to function and achieve again, physically and emotionally, with the help of occupational therapists.
Often, the work occupational therapists do is physical, especially when working with those with permanent disabilities, such as spinal cord injuries, cerebral palsy, or muscular dystrophy, in the use of adaptive equipment. Other times though, they are planners and motivators, using indirect training methods to help patients with developmental disabilities achieve greater competency in areas like social and linguistic cognition, sensory processing, and visual perception.
What do occupational therapists do in schools?
Occupational therapists are part of the education team in school districts across the country. In this setting, they help teachers and counselors build plans to support academic and non-academic outcomes including social skills, math, reading, writing, recess, participation in sports, self-help skills, prevocational/vocational participation and more, for children and students with disabilities, 3 to 21 years of age.
Occupational therapists are especially skilled in helping students access curricular and extra-curricular activities through supports, design planning, and other methods.
The tasks they undertake to achieve this include:
- Observe students engaging in an activity and develop strategies to foster the students' full participation
- Reduce barriers in the school environment that may be limiting students' full participation.
- Help plan relevant instructional activities.
- Work with students to identify and achieve post school goals.
What is the career outlook for occupational therapists in education?
As the importance of access for all people becomes more important, the demand for occupational therapists in the school setting is growing dramatically. School districts across the country are adding occupational therapists to their staff in order to work with physically and developmentally disabled patients. Occupational therapists are helping these students reach new heights academically, which is encouraging more school districts to emulate the successful programs sprouting up across the country.
