TrennaHedberg

﻿ Trenna Hedberg's Research on Occupational Therapists Description: Occupational therapists help patients improve their ability to perform tasks in living and working environments. They work with individuals who suffer from a mentally, physically, developmentally, or emotionally disabling condition. Occupational therapists use treatments to develop, recover, or maintain the daily living and work skills of their patients. The therapist helps clients not only to improve their basic motor functions and reasoning abilities, but also to compensate for permanent loss of function. The goal is to help clients have independent, productive, and satisfying lives.

Work environment: -In large rehabilitation centers, therapists may work in spacious rooms equipped with machines, tools, and other devices generating noise. -Occupational therapists working for one employer full-time usually work a 40-hour week. [|**http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos078.htm**] - Salary:
 * Home health care services || $74,510 ||
 * Nursing care facilities || 72,790 ||
 * Offices of other health care practitioners || 69,360 ||
 * General medical and surgical hospitals || 68,100 ||
 * Elementary and secondary schools || 60,020 ||

Median annual wages of occupational therapists were $66,780 in May 2008. The middle 50 percent earned between $55,090 and $81,290. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $42,820, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $98,310.
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Schooling Required: A master's degree or higher. In addition, occupational therapists must attend an academic program accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) in order to sit for the national certifying exam. Certification is voluntary. Those who pass the test are awarded the title Occupational Therapist Registered (OTR). = **- Florida Gulf Coast University ** = = ** - University of Florida ** = = ** -University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences ** = [] []

Where can I find this career? Everywhere

Would I be interested in this career? Yes I would be interested in this career field because I would enjoy helping others every day, although while researching occupational therapy I've decided I would probably be more interested in Physical Therapy.

Interview: Name: Sue Hale

Profession: Occupational Therapy

Do you like your job? I love my job.

What are some positives about your job? Helping, meeting new people, using my imagination, making custom splints and nobody ever dies on me.

What are some negatives about your job? Having restrictions put on my patients by insurance companies.

What are your job roles? Ordering, paying bills, supervising, managing staff and directing care.

Out of the college/training that you had to go through, what was the most useful and what was the least useful skills/classes that you were required to accomplish? Anatomy was most useful and math was least useful.

How much do you make a week? A year? Enough.

Do you find it easy or hard to live off your salary? You can live.

Are you required to continue training/progressing in your education to remain competitve and capable to do your job? If so, what sort of continual training is required? Yes, I have to recertify every 5 years and get a new liscense every two years.

Do you find your field in high demand (competitive), not enough well qualified persons, or are there too many people within your field? There isn't too many qualified people in my profession doing just hand therapy.

If you could go back to college and re-do your career choice, would you? Why? Yes I would be a hand surgeon but I don't regret anything.

What motivates you to do your best work? Helping my patients and watching them be able to do something they couldn't of done without my help.

How many hours a week do you work? 50

What made you choice to be an occupational therapist? I grew up in Indiana and my mother worked at a hand therapy clinic.