Skip to main content

Era Presentation Recap

During the Era Presentations, an event that carried over through a couple decades was World War II, starting in the 1940s.  Men were sent off to war, so women were forced to become the breadwinners of families and make a living for themselves.  If women did not get a job in this time period, it definitely sparked a movement of women entering the workforce shortly after.  WWII created an increased need for OT to tend to injured soldiers and veterans trying to participate in civilian life after war.  This opened up many job opportunities to women, and kickstarted the growth of OT.  It was needed then more than ever.  Soldiers needed to regain strength and mobility to be able to fight for our country, and veterans needed to overcome mental illnesses or other physical limitations to participate in life after war.  OT thrived in these years, and the country needed more practitioners to keep up with the demand.  More and more OT programs were developed in the US in years after the war.  It is crazy that something so good could be a direct effect of something so bad.  The war might have been the best thing that could happen to the field of OT because it became very relevant very fast.  It helped OT make a name for itself and has continued to grow ever since.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Person-First Language

" The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and the lightning bug. "   - Mark Twain  People with disabilities are just like every other human being.  Person-first language puts focus on the individual and not the disability.  We should not identify individuals based on their functional or mental limitations.  For example, a practitioner should refer to someone as "a man who had a stroke" instead of a "stroke patient."  I believe it is important to understand and practice person-first language to be an effective practitioner.  First, it allows the client to feel more comfortable, and you will make more progress together if the client feels like an individual and not a disability.  Second, occupational therapists are trained to help people as a whole, not just the disability, so it is important for us to look past the disability and focus on the client, as well.  There are countless mo...
1 comment
Read more

Neuro Note #1 Lindsey Becker

For my first Neuro Note, I watched a few videos from Lindsey Becker's YouTube channel.  Lindsey is a woman with spina bifida and happens to be this year's Ms. Wheelchair Tennessee.  She uses a wheelchair in her everyday life, and posts videos on YouTube about how she adapts and modifies her environment to continue living a normal life.  The videos I watched included "Home Adaptations," "Wheelchair user Mazda RX-8 with adaptive hand controls," and "PSA for Package Delivery Couriers for Wheelchairs."  I chose to watch Lindsey's videos for this assignment because I was just informed she will be coming to UTHSC's campus as a SOTA guest speaker.  We also discuss home modifications in class, and I wanted to see what that looked like in an actual home.  In the first video, Lindsey walked the audience through all the modifications in her home including two ramps, shower and closet remodels, as well as kitchen remodeling plans.  It was eye-opening...
Post a Comment
Read more

Rolling Grizzlies

Last night my OT class had the opportunity to watch a local D-I professional wheelchair basketball team practice.  The Rolling Grizzlies is an athletic group of men who compete in the highest wheelchair basketball division.  What an experience it was getting to watch them play.  Not only did we get to watch, but the players let us take their chairs for a spin!  I played basketball growing up, so I jumped at the opportunity to try out one of the chairs.  Instantly I realized the arm strength required to shoot and pass the ball from a seated position as well as the coordination needed for pushing the chair and dribbling the ball smoothly.  It is much harder than typical basketball.  These men played for an hour and a half with hardly any breaks.  This shows what great physical shape is required to participate in this game. During my undergraduate career, I was fortunate enough to take an adapted athletics course where we learned about all types of ...
Post a Comment
Read more