The Pros And Cons Of Occupational Therapy

Occupational therapy was born in 1917 with the founding of The National Society for the Promotion of Occupational Therapy. The five founders held a belief that occupation was a valuable therapeutic tool, but also knew scientific evidence would push occupational therapy (OT) to be a respected field (Schwartz, 2003). Much has changed in OT in the last hundred years, but OT still stands strong on two points, occupation based interventions and evidence based practice. With the high demand for evidence based practice comes the need for research and highly skilled therapists who can put research into practice. OT moved from a bachelor’s degree to a master’s degree to ensure graduates had a proper education. With a complex medical system and need
Graduates of OTD programs learn the skills to become leaders at work and take on new roles. Leadership can take on several different appearances including development of programs to promote health and quality of life, and taking on a larger role in interprofessional teams to ensure that the client’s full occupational profile is taken into account (Case-Smith et al., 2014). A survey conducted to review the opinions of recent OTD graduates found 73% felt they had the ability to design new programs and that 50% had created new programs at their work since graduation. The survey also found that 53% of the graduates had assumed new leadership roles since their graduation (Salls, Provident, & Dolhi, 2012). This survey suggests that gaining an OTD gives practitioners an advantage over their counterparts who have not gained a doctoral degree. Leadership in policy creation will also secure a future for OT at the clinic, state and federal level (Case-Smith et al., 2014). In clinics, OTs can help shape policies that outline what certain services provide and when these services are initiated. At the state and federal level OTs can advocate for rule changes such as ending Medicare caps and better coverage for mental health