OT in the NICU

Hi Readers:

This week I want to talk about the NICU, or the neonatal intensive care unit. This is a department in a hospital deals with prematurely born babies and newborns who are experiencing problems after birth. The occupational therapist’s role in the NICU is to evaluate the baby, develop a plan of treatment, assist in treatment, and to educate the families, then finally the discharge process.

Areas of treatment that the occupational therapist works with the baby on are neurobehavioral organization, sensory development and processing, motor function, pain, daily activity and social-emotional development (AOTA). Even though this unit strictly works with infants, it works with patients who have all different kinds of conditions.

A fellow blogger named Kayla has a whole blog dedicated to occupational therapist in the neonatal intensive care unit. She discusses treatments and managements, different types of patients in the NICU and more. Kayla is also an occupational therapist major at Saint Louis University and has a strong interest in children. Kayla uses great sources in her weekly blog posts, giving her posts great credibility. If you want to learn more about occupational therapy in the NICU, go to Kayla’s blog “Occupational Therapy in the NICU”.  I will leave the link below! I hope you learned a little bit more about OT in the NICU and find Kayla’s blog even more helpful!

Thanks for reading!

Megan

Kayla's blog: http://nicuot.blogspot.com/

References:

American Occupational Therapy Association. (2006). Specialized knowledge and skills for occupational therapy practice in the neonatal intensive care unit. Retrieved from http://www.aota.org/-/media/corporate/files/practice/children/browse/ei/official-docs/specialized%20ks%20nicu.pdf

Occupational Therapist in Oncology

Hi Readers:

Another area where an occupational therapist could work is oncology, or cancer units. Working in this area means that you would mainly work in a hospital, either general or children’s, or sometimes rehabilitation centers and hospice units. A general hospital means that you could have a variety of patients of all ages.

As an OT in this department, your role would be “to facilitate and enable an individual patient to achieve maximum functional performance, […] regardless of his or her life expectancy” (AOTA). This means that you would help a patient with everyday life activities, lifestyle management, help them maintain functional range of motion through exercises, cognitive skills and more. There are many different types of cancers and they, along with their treatments, can effect patients differently. This means that each patient will have unique needs for therapy and plans of action. Some patients struggle with the side effects of treatment such as fatigue, pain, and other illnesses. While other patients may have difficulties socializing as a result of their condition. An OT would “address these effects through intervention aimed at restoring function” (AOTA). Even once treatment is over and a patient is in remission, they still require OT services to transition back to normal living.

An occupational therapist can make a great impact on cancer patients both during and after treatment. Cancer is a disease that can drastically effect a person’s daily living and they need assistance on how to live as normally as they possibly can. Hopefully I provided you with adequate information on what an OT can do in an oncology unit and you enjoyed this week’s blog!

Thanks for reading!

Megan

References:

American Occupational Therapy Association. (2011). The role of occupational therapy in oncology. http://www.aota.org/~/media/Corporate/Files/AboutOT/Professionals/WhatIsOT/RDP/Facts/Oncology%20fact%20sheet.pdf

OTs in Mental Health Settings

Hi Readers:

This week, I want to talk about yet another area where an occupational therapist can work, which is mental health. Mental health is one of the original areas where occupational therapists began working. Mental health settings where OT may practice can included community mental health centers, homeless and women’s shelters, correctional facilities, after school programs and more. As an OT working in mental health, “the ultimate goal being full participation in community activities” (AOTA). The activities they have in mind are going to school, obtaining a job and living independently. The patients and clients in this particular setting can be of any age and a range of illnesses.

To work in this setting, the occupational therapist is trained to be able to provide mental and physical health and wellness, rehabilitation and recovery support. They receive this training or education through at least one experience in a psychosocial setting. Mental health is one of the leading causes of disabilities in the world and we need healthcare providers who can help these patients live to their fullest potential. Occupational therapists are one of those healthcare providers that can help these individuals create and develop skills in order to achieve their goals of living independently and fully participating in everyday life activities.

Thank you for reading and I hope I provided you with helpful information about occupational therapy in mental health settings.

Megan

References:

American Occupational Therapy Association. (2013). Occupational therapy's role in community mental health.

http://www.aota.org/~/media/Corporate/Files/AboutOT/Professionals/WhatIsOT/MH/Facts/Community-mental-health.pdf?la=en

OT in Acute Care

Hi Readers:

I have previously discussed occupational therapy jobs in both school and skilled nursing facilities, two very different environments. This week I want to give you some information on a OT setting that is a little in between those two, acute care. “Acute care is an inpatient hospital setting for individuals with a critical medical condition” such as brain or spinal cord injury, progressive diseases and more (AOTA).

As an occupational therapist in this setting, there are a variety of jobs you could be responsible for. The role of the OT is to help with “early mobilization, restoring function, preventing further decline and coordinating care” which involves transition to and discharge from the facility (AOTA). Also, when working in this setting, you get to work with a wide range of patients with different conditions and ages, so there is more diversity in your work. Some of the different areas in the acute care unit that an OT can work in are critical care, neurology, orthopedics, psychiatry, behavioral health and pediatrics. The OT also has to work collaboratively with other health care professionals such as physical therapists, nurses, speech pathologists, and doctors to ensure the best care for their patients.

As an acute care occupational therapist, you have the opportunity to make a big impact on someone’s health and life. You have the opportunity to work with a variety of patients and in diverse units within the facility as well. Hopefully this gave you a little more perspective on what an acute care occupational therapist does!

Thanks,

Megan

References:

American Occupational Therapy Association. (2012). Occupational therapy's role in acute care. http://www.aota.org/~/media/Corporate/Files/AboutOT/Professionals/WhatIsOT/RDP/Facts/Acute-Care.pdf?la=en