I knew pretty early on that I wanted to pursue a career in the rehabilitation field. Luckily, I was able to shadow many different settings during my undergrad years. I was offered a job as an OT aide my senior year at the University of Alabama at a local outpatient clinic called Tuscaloosa Rehab and Hand Center. I had hands-on experience with client and non-client related tasks. I was exposed to the many different aspects of outpatient therapy, and what it would be like to work on an interdisciplinary team. This setting really stood out to me, and I developed an interest in hand therapy. I loved how each client was different and challenging in their own ways. Seeing individuals lose functioning in their hands, and then being able to help them get back to living their best life would be so rewarding. Achieving the Certified Hand Therapist (CHT) specialty certification is something I would love to do. Not only would it make me more specialized in the field of occupational therapy, it would be a long-term professional development goal. Because I am interested in hand therapy, the CHT certification is very appealing to me. Once I graduate, I want to surpass the Entry-level performance level and further develop my career.
Do-Live-Well is a framework of reference used by occupational therapists that ultimately emphasizes "what you do everyday matters." It has four main sections being (1) dimensions of experience, (2) activity patterns, (3) health and well-being outcomes, and (4) contextual forces influencing activity engagement, or things in the environment. These sections are further broken down into more specific dimensions. This framework can help identify missed or disrupted dimensions that interrupt with an individual's well-being. It aims to empower people in reflecting on their patterns of activity engagement and promote health and well-being. This framework can be used on all populations and in any setting. When using this framework, a therapist might assess the client's activity patterns such as habits, routines, roles and rituals, ADL skill level, community involvement, and physical abilities.
Hi Anna! That's really cool that you had that exposure to a specialty area of practice so early on along the path in your OT career! Incidentally, I did one of my Level II fieldworks at DCH in Tuscaloosa :)
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