What is the role of an occupational therapist? If you’re thinking about becoming an OT, you must know that there are several types of jobs in occupational therapy and that the occupational therapist duties vary among them, so you have to select your field carefully. However, the benefits of working in occupational therapy are the same, regardless of the branch you pursue, so whatever you choose, will be a fulfilling experience on its own. So, what do occupational therapists do?

This article will serve as your introduction to the occupational therapist duties every OT has to follow. If you’re interested in the benefits of working in occupational therapy, keep reading below and see if this is the job for you.

What Is The Role Of An Occupational Therapist?

Occupational Therapist Duties

So, what do occupational therapists do? Their duties, regardless of their field, reduce to:

• Keep an eye on their patients’ medical history and evaluate their condition and needs. They also keep track of their patients’ activities and progress for evaluations and reports to be delivered to physicians and other healthcare providers.
• Develop treatment plans with specific activities and goals in mind. For example, if they’re suffering addictions of some sort, they could design plans for detox treatments and/or apply addiction relapse techniques, and gradually help their patients untie themselves from their addictions.
• Help people with various disabilities with tasks they need assistance with and relieve their pain with exercises. OTs also train and recommend patients on special equipment they need for their health.
• Improve the patient’s home or workplace, based on their health needs, and educate their family and employer on the patient’s accommodation.

You can see this way how occupational therapy plays an important role in the life of the patient. However, what about the OT? What makes it worthwhile to work in this field? What are some reasons to work in Pediatric AOTA or with elderly people? Let us announce some of them.

Benefits of Working in Occupational Therapy

OTs benefit from the following:

1. Thanks to its growing demand, Occupational Therapy has become one of the fastest-growing industries with one of the highest employment rates worldwide.
2. High salaries are a major appeal too. To illustrate you on this point, the median annual wage for occupational therapists was $75,400 in May 2012 – and growing.
3. Because they can work in all kinds of places and people, OTs will develop emotional and communication skills as they work, acquire unique medical skills (the recent sensory integration in OTP, for example, has made OTs far more skillful than regular physicians and nurses in some fields) and even have the chance to work abroad with enhanced job benefits in the new culture they immerse into.
4. OTs rest as much as he or she works: they enjoy flexible schedules, depending on their patients’ schedules and needs.

Is This the Right Job For You?

In order to become an OT, you need a master’s degree in occupational therapy and even some sort of experience in an occupational therapy setting.

After you’ve earned a degree from an accredited program and completed all fieldwork requirements, you need to pass the national examination administered by the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapists (NBCOT) in order to get the title “Occupational Therapist Registered” (OTR).

As you can expect, this job is a great fit for people with great interest in helping people. However, the job does require excellent communication skills, compassion and flexibility when treating patients, interpersonal skills and patience when dealing with their ailments, and even writing skills in order to explain clearly the treatment plan and progress made they make.

If you feel any of this resonates within you, then this job might be a good fit for you.

Summary

What are the duties and responsibilities of an occupational therapist?

Occupational therapists observe patients, evaluate them, develop a treatment plan for them, laying and help them sort out daily tasks through routine activities and exercises.

What can occupational therapists help with?

OTs support people whose health prevents them from doing important activities.

What is the purpose of an occupational therapist?

OTs help people increase their functional independence if they suffer a disability. They help them deal with daily tasks through practical activities suited to them.

So, what do occupational therapists do? What is the role of an occupational therapist? Although there are different types of jobs in occupational therapy, the occupational therapist duties reduce to assist and help people with disabilities become functional members of society through coaching, activities and assessment. Although the monetary and schedule benefits of working in occupational therapy are plentiful, maybe the greatest perk of being an OT is that satisfaction you feel when you help people in dire need lead a normal life, despite their physical in capacities. Read more about us and discover how we can help enhance your life through our treatments as well.