My Story (as told by Katie Tietz, MS, OTR/L) In 2014 I began my career as an occupational therapist; full of newly absorbed knowledge and bursting with excitement to get out there and use it to make a true difference in the world! I set my sights high (as I’m sure many of you can […]
If you’re looking for functional, occupation-based standing tolerance activities to use in your rehab practice, look no further! I’ve compiled a list of my favorite occupation-based ideas for when you’re looking to keep your standing tolerance interventions related to your patients’ daily occupations. These standing tolerance activities are for any patients that have reduced tolerance to standing, […]
Occupation-based interventions: It may seem like common sense to use these as occupational therapists. After all, our title has the word “occupation” in it, for goodness sake! Unfortunately, assembly-line therapy has reduced the use of occupation-based treatments in favor of exercises that make point of service and high productivity the main objective versus providing quality, […]
Is it possible to care for a patient when you know they really do not need occupational therapy services? Unfortunately, this is a common ethical dilemma occupational therapists face on the job. There are times where you will find yourself torn between advocating for a patient but you know they are not appropriate for therapy. Typically […]
PRN occupational therapy: There is a lot to say about it, and because I’m a PRN (or per diem) occupational therapist myself, I really wanted to share my PRN experiences (the good AND the bad). In this article, I lay out the pros and cons of becoming a PRN occupational therapist. This will help you decide […]
If you’re an occupational therapy practitioner or student searching for occupation-based dynamic balance interventions, then this article is just for you! Occupation-based interventions are not only our bread and butter, but they also differentiate us from physical therapy. It can be way too easy to accidentally do the same non-occupation based balance interventions as our […]
As an occupational therapist, you often have patients that are best treated with more than one person (also known as co-treating). The big question is: Should the second person be the nurse, a tech, or a physical therapist? The following will help guide your decision-making process to decide if a patient would be best served […]
Energy conservation techniques (ECTs) are also referred to as work simplification techniques, and both terms are very much within the realm of occupational therapy practice. In order to clear up a common misconception, let’s state right off the bat that promoting ECTs is not synonymous with promoting the “art of laziness.” Rather, energy conservation techniques […]
As occupational therapists, we are instructed to constantly think outside of the box when coordinating and designing therapy intervention. We come to better understand our patients/clients if we strongly acknowledge our patient’s goals and lifestyle needs within their environment. However, we are unable to fully comprehend individuals’ lifestyles and cultural influences by sitting in one […]
Brain damage has devastating consequences on an individual’s daily function and quality of life. Movement restrictions, emotional changes, behavioral problems, and communication deficits differ in severity but drastically reshape a person’s life as well as those of their close family and friends. In this post, you’ll learn about one of the most frustrating disorders that […]