Occupational Therapist

n occupational therapist may perform a number of different tasks on a daily basis.

What an occupational therapist's day looks like depends on the needs of their individual patients as well as the type of facility where they work. Some occupational therapists work in a hospital or rehabilitation center, for example, while others provide home health care services.

An Occupational Therapist's Duties May Include Evaluation/Re-evaluation An OT administer and evaluates clients through the use of standardized assessments. They gauge functional abilities, including physical, emotional, cognitive, and sensory components to evaluate the necessity of skilled occupational therapy intervention.

Treatment An OT helps the client achieve goals set forth in the treatment plan by providing neuromuscular reeducation, therapeutic activity, therapeutic exercise, manual therapy, self-care/home management training, development of cognitive skills, sensory integration techniques, wheelchair management, and wound care.

Discharge A therapist ensures safety at discharge and continuation of progress by providing home exercise programs, family/caregiver instruction, recommendations for assistive equipment, and recommendations for continued therapy in a less-restrictive setting.

Contribution to Healthcare Team A therapist communicates with the larger health team through effective documentation and charting in the patient and department records.

Maintenance of Department Integrity An occupational therapist complies with federal and state professional requirements.3 They also maintain professional expertise through continued education as necessitated by licensure and as appropriate for the provision of specific treatments.

In some cases, they may further develop the occupational therapy department by annually reviewing best practices.