Chris stated, "I have decided will no longer be an Upper Extremity PT. I continue to tell folks no one cares how you achieve good standing balance whether standing at the stove to make muffins or standing at a counter to plant bulbs or decorate a Christmas tree " ____________________________________________________________________________ Well said, Chris. And, I probably would personally engage in planting bulbs versus standing at the stove! I guess that brings us back to the earlier discussion. As Jimmie and someone else in one of earlier posts stated (and I conferred), it is not the activity/ modality that automatically qualifies as occupational therapy but the underlying focus on occupational performance. (After all, the balloon activity is no more OT than PT, or recreational therapy, unless qualified to the right context). And, again while it is a great activity in the geriatric or pediatric population, it may not be quite so engaging and meaningful to a recovering athlete wanting to get back to competitive sports, or industrial worker returning to his labor-intensive employment.
After being an OT for the past 12 years (yes, I am an old one, too) and having supervised a few students, I am convinced that our educational system needs overhauling. We cannot expect the 2-3 years of graduate school can automatically provide a "universally suited" OT, and likewise for the OTAs. My personal thoughts: 1. Standardize our pre-professional and entry-level education with strong foundation in basic sciences including occupational science, biomedical sciences, behavioral sciences and allied subjects such as ergonomics, biomechanics and kinesiology, etc. 2. Compulsory rotation during fieldwork in all traditional settings- acute, sub-acute, long-term, outpatient, home health, etc., and other non-traditional settings as much as possible 3. Practice must be based on setting-specific (entry-level and continued) demonstrated competency (parallels may be drawn with psychologists, i.e, school, industrial, clinical, social, behavioral, etc., and physicians based on specialty areas). This may be done initially be adding a residency for the therapist first entering the field. That is, for example, a LTC or psych-based therapist must demonstrate competency in occupation-based treatments, and a hand-therapist demonstrating competency in the biomechanical aspects as well (may I add that the biomechanical approach by itself does not qualify as OT any more than the craft sessions with acute psych). In my opinion, the field and scope of OT is too wide for all of us to have a consensus on the competency level of an OT suited for all settings, but with setting specific competency we will be able to draft a context-based expectation for both the professionals and our consumers. This will also help us to upgrade our services and practice our profession as intended by our scope. Joe Wells, OTD, OTR/L -- Internal Virus Database is out-of-date. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.432 / Virus Database: 268.15.18/586 - Release Date: 12/13/2006 6:13 PM -- Options? www.otnow.com/mailman/options/otlist_otnow.com Archive? www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] ************************************************************************************** Enroll in Boston University's post-professional Master of Science for OTs Online. Gain the skills and credentials to propel your career. www.otdegree.com/otn **************************************************************************************
