Travel Occupational Therapist (OT)

Tasks

• Complete and maintain necessary records.

• Test and evaluate patients' physical and mental abilities and analyze medical data to determine realistic rehabilitation goals for patients.

• Train caregivers in providing for the needs of a patient during and after therapy.

• Evaluate patients' progress and prepare reports that detail progress.

• Plan, organize, and conduct occupational therapy programs in hospital, institutional, or community settings to help rehabilitate those impaired because of illness, injury or psychological or developmental problems.

• Select activities that will help individuals learn work and life-management skills within limits of their mental or physical capabilities.

• Recommend changes in patients' work or living environments, consistent with their needs and capabilities.

• Design and create, or requisition, special supplies and equipment, such as splints, braces, and computer-aided adaptive equipment.

• Develop and participate in health promotion programs, group activities, or discussions to promote client health, facilitate social adjustment, alleviate stress, and prevent physical or mental disability.

• Consult with rehabilitation team to select activity programs or coordinate occupational therapy with other therapeutic activities.

• Lay out materials such as puzzles, scissors and eating utensils for use in therapy, and clean and repair these tools after therapy sessions.

• Plan and implement programs and social activities to help patients learn work or school skills and adjust to handicaps.

• Help clients improve decision making, abstract reasoning, memory, sequencing, coordination, and perceptual skills, using computer programs.

• Provide training and supervision in therapy techniques and objectives for students or nurses and other medical staff.

• Conduct research in occupational therapy.

• Advise on health risks in the workplace or on health-related transition to retirement.

• Provide patients with assistance in locating or holding jobs.

Skills

• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.

• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

• Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.

• Learning Strategies - Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.

• Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

• Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

• Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.

• Persuasion - Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.

• Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.

• Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.

• Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.

• Operations Analysis - Analyzing needs and product requirements to create a design.

• Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.

• Systems Analysis - Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.

• Systems Evaluation - Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.

• Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.

Knowledge

• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

• Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

• Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.

• Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.

• Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.

• Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.

• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.