April was Occupational Therapy Month! Our thanks to Occupational Therapy Supervisor Kristie McMullen, OTR/L, and Certified Occupational Therapist Assistant Ryan Murphy, COTA/L, who took the time to answer some common questions about occupational therapy (OT) for our blog. And thank you to our inpatient and outpatient OT teams for all you do for our patients in their recovery!
What is the role of occupational therapy, or OT?
The role of OT is to assist in facilitating a patient’s return to independence in their activities of daily living (ADLs), instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs), and functional mobility through the use of activities that are meaningful to the patient.
ADLs are the activities a person completes throughout the day, including bathing, dressing, eating, and other self-care activities. IADLs are the activities that a person does that allows them to live independently, such as cooking, cleaning, driving, and managing finances.
What is the difference between OT and physical therapy?
Physical therapy (PT) assesses strength, balance, and range of motion and how those things affect a person’s mobility. OT assesses how strength, balance, and cognition impact the meaningful daily activities in someone’s life.
PT helps you get where you are going and OT helps you return to independence in the things that occupy your day.
What are the types of injuries or illnesses that require OT?
Any acute or chronic illness or injury that impedes a patient’s ability to independently complete their ADLs and IADLs. This may include trauma, orthopaedic, cardiac, and neurology patients; for example, patients who are recovering from a car accident or stroke.
Do you have any specific examples of how occupational therapists work with patients – for example, types of exercises or goals that would be set for a patient?
Patients’ goals focus on the tasks that they complete in their normal daily routines. OT works to increase a patient’s ability to complete these tasks independently through teaching of compensatory strategies, increasing strength, and improving balance.
What kind of training does an occupational therapist receive?
An occupational therapist requires a master’s degree and must complete hands-on fieldwork experience prior to taking a national certification exam. An occupational therapy assistant requires an associate’s degree and must complete hands-on fieldwork experience prior to a national certification exam. Occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants are also required to complete continuing education courses throughout their careers.
What does our team look like at Cooper? Can you be found in both the inpatient and outpatient settings? How do those services differ?
Our inpatient OT team has nine full-time occupational therapists and two full-time occupational therapy assistants. Inpatient OT services focus mainly on rehabilitating patients to safely return home and complete most of their OT (ADLs and some IADLs).
Outpatient OT focuses more on fine tuning the ability to engage in all previous occupations (such as driving, working) that may not be appropriate to work on as inpatient.