Occupational Therapists

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

Source: O*NET OnLine information for Occupational Therapists.

• Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
• Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
• 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.
• Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.

Source: O*NET OnLine information for Occupational Therapists.