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.
What were the key takeaway points from the guest lecture today? Describe two occupational therapy interventions based on the topic. Each intervention should address a different type of client: individual (1:1), group, or population. Key Takeaways Our society creates myths that older adults are asexual. While it is not often talked about, older adults remain sexually active into their later years. Studies show that organs can relieve pain, reduce stress, improve sleep, boost immune system and cognitive functioning, as well as increase life span. Knowing this, sex has a direct impact on older adult clients. Today we gained an understanding of the fundamental differences between approaches to sexual interactions based on biological gender. Sex is an occupation and therefore is covered in the occupational therapy scope of practice. It is important for us to be educated on this topic in order to educate future clients who are experiencing sexual ...
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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