Occupational Therapy Lenoir-Rhyne University Angelica Nichols, Amy Greene, Carley Pencola

What is Occupational Therapy?  “Occupational therapy is a service that helps people across the lifespan be empowered by achieving independence, improving health, and enhancing quality of life through the therapeutic use of everyday activities and/or occupations”

Video 

Occupational Therapy Terminology AOTA, 2013

The 3 Levels of OT  OT: Doctorate Level  Doctorate Degree in Occupational Therapy  Total of 10 months of fieldwork  NBCOT Boards  Education, Evaluation, Treatment, and Research  OT: Professional Level  Masters of Science in Occupational Therapy  Total of 6 months of fieldwork  NBCOT Boards  Evaluation and Treatment autonomously  OTA: Technical Level  Associate’s degree from OT assistant program at community college  Total of 3 months of fieldwork  NBCOT boards  Treatment, supervised by OT

Practice Areas in Occupational Therapy  Physical and Cognitive Rehabilitation  Pediatrics  Geriatrics  Mental Health

Physical and Cognitive Rehabilitation  Acute Care:  Goal of acute care is to stabilize the client’s medical status and address any threats to his or her life and loss of function  Engage in early mobilization, restoring function, preventing further decline, and coordinating care  Time period: up to 5-7 days  Inpatient Care:  Goal is to address the client’s loss or impairment of function in activities of daily living, instrumental activities of daily living, performance skills, orthotics/prosthetics, splinting, adaptive equipment, etc.  3 hours of therapy 5 days a week, 1 to 3 months  Outpatient Care:  Goal is to address the client’s loss or impairment in instrumental activities of daily living, work, education, adaptive equipment, etc.  Varies

Physical and Cognitive Rehabilitation

Pediatrics  Early Intervention  Goal is for birth to 3 years old who have disabilities, or who are at risk for developing them, the help they need to succeed later in life  School  Goal is to perform important learning and school-related activities and to fulfill their role as students.  3 to 21 years of age.  Clinics  Goal is to engage in occupations that enable them to learn and develop life skills (e.g., school activities), be creative and/or derive enjoyment (e.g., play), and thrive (e.g., self-care and care for others)  Diagnoses:  Autism  Brain Injury  ADHD  Spina Bifida  Cerebral Palsy  Learning Disabilities, etc.

Pediatrics

Geriatrics  Skilled Nursing Homes  For adults that require medical care for variable periods of time from relatively short to more extended or even permanent residence  Assisted Living Facilities  Long-term residential facility where elders do not require 24 hour medical attention; some services are available  Treatment for:  Diagnoses: Stroke, Total-Hip Replacement, Total-shoulder replacement, Arthritis, Parkinson’s Disease, Dementia, etc.  Activities of daily living—feeding, grooming, dressing, toileting, etc.  Adaptive Equipment  Environmental Modifications  Maintenance Programs

Geriatrics

Mental Health  A primary goal of the recovery model is to facilitate resiliency, health, and wellness in the community of the individual’s choice, rather than to manage symptoms.  Settings:  Psychiatric Hospitals  Forensic Patients  Group Homes  Juvenile Centers, etc.  Treatment  Coping & Stress management strategies  Sensory modulation  Healthy habits, roles, and rituals  Wellness recovery action plan (WRAP)  Employment

Mental Health

Why OT?  OT is ranked #11 on the ‘100 Best Jobs’ list according to US News   It is ranked #7 in ‘Best Healthcare Jobs’ according to US News  Times magazine ranked OT #18 out of 150 for recession proof jobs

The demand & facts for OT  Percent change in employment, projected for occupational therapists is 33%  Health Diagnosing and Treating Practitioners is 26%  Total, All Occupations in US – 14%  Employment 2010 – 108,000  Projected employment 2020 – 145,200  Increase – 36,400

Salary  OT average in US- $72,320  Average for all occupations in US – $33,840  Home health care services $79,570  Nursing care facilities 78,410  Offices of physical, occupational and speech therapists, and audiologists 73,770  Hospitals; state, local, and private 72,450  Individual and family services 64,520

Accredited schools in North Carolina  OT – professional entry-level master’s program  East Carolina University  Lenoir-Rhyne University  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill  Winston-Salem State University  OTA – associate degree  Cabarrus College of Health Sciences (Concord)  Cape Fear Community College (Wilmington)  Durham Technical Community College (Durham)  Pitt Community College (Greenville)

Pre-requisite classes required for MSOT  Human Anatomy  Human Physiology  Statistics  Developmental Psychology or Lifespan Development  Developmental Psychology  Abnormal Psychology  Sociology/Anthropology  Ethics/Philosophy  Medical Terminology  Exploring Occupational Therapy

Undergraduate degree that correlates well with MSOT  Psychology  Sociology  Exercise Science  Recreational Therapy  Child Development  Counseling  Occupational Science  Biology  Anthropology  Health Science

Average costs of school for MSOT/COTA  ~$6,609 per year in tuition for average in NC  LRU ~$24,200 per year in tuition

Questions ???