As a profession, occupational therapy has been repeatedly confronted with the challenge to prove the value of occupation as a therapeutic medium. The types of research pursued by occupational therapists have evolved in response to societal trends, external pressures, and the priorities of individual practitioners. Although many therapists have reconciled the pursuit of research with the roots o...

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to determine if Jordanian health professionals have adequate understanding of occupational therapy. A convenience sample of 556 Jordanian physicians, nurses, and physical therapists from two hospitals completed a developed questionnaire about occupational therapy including general knowledge, areas of practice, therapy goals, treatment strategies, and perce...

The American Journal of Occupational Therapy 97 Acommon partnership in delivery of occupational therapy services is the one between the occupational therapist (OT) and the occupational therapy assistant (OTA). Although they work closely, each has separate roles and responsibilities: The primary role of the OTA is treatment implementation, whereas the OT is responsible for all aspects of the occ...

No agreement has been reached about what constitutes a satisfactory norm for the remedial therapy services. In geriatric medicine recommended norms vary from 0-26 to 0-5 trained physiotherapists and from 0-27 to 0-4 trained occupational therapists per thousand population aged 65 and over, with a corresponding number of therapy aides.'-4 In the light of the rapid increase in the numbers of very ...

Jeffrey L. Crabtree, OTD, OT, FAOTA, is Director, Community Mobility and Participation in Society (COMPASS) Lab and Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy, School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Indiana University–Purdue University at Indianapolis. Many in our profession would agree that the question of whether our profession should move to the entry-level doctoral degree is still a...

Chronic pain is common among individuals with physical disabilities. It can interfere with therapy since patients with chronic pain can become uncooperative and reluctant to move. In some cases, patients may even project their discomfort onto the therapist. This paper reviews the natural physiological mechanisms that can reduce pain perception. The occupational therapist can help faCilitate the...

It’s possible that you are reading this shortly after returning from the AOTA Annual Conference and Expo in Minneapolis. For those who were not able to attend, let me tell you a little about what the experience of “conferencing” is like—at least for me, a veteran of at least 20 conferences. In my early days as an occupational therapist, I attended Conference to hear about the newest assessments...

The issue is not generalist versus specialist, bachelor's degree versus master's degree, or even registered occupational therapist versus certified occupational therapy assistant. The issue is: What is each professional's product? What is the process by which each produces it? What knowledge, skills, and judgment do each need to competently produce the product? And, under what circumstances and...

Occupational therapists need to be critical of who teaches, what is taught, how it is taught, how it is applied, and to whom it is taught in the entire education program of prospective occupational therapists. Further, I recommend that occupational therapy educators on campus take the lead in initiating meetings and discussions that facilitate a functional conjoining of occupational therapy pra...