Not all OTRs are "administrative assistants" aka "secretaries". I
think you will find in many settings OTR's do much more than this and i
think this is a very narrow minded statement coming from someone who
wants respect as a professional. I am actually a MOT/DPT student
completing evidenced based research and "fell" onto this forum
mistakingly, but could not exit until i was finished reading all of
these posts. I think it is absolutely astounding that people who are
supposed to be working toward the same goals, for the same reason, are
bashing one another mainly because something has been said or done at
one point that has offended them. I am sure COTA's have a vast amount
of knowledge as well as experience, i do not know specifically because
i have not been through one of your programs and therefore have no
reason to undermine your knowledge. I have been privileged to have the
opportunity to attain an occupational science bachelor's degree as well
as currently work towards a MOT and DPT degree. With this being said, I do not
think my education or job title encompasses who I am, it is a passion i
have that i have followed. I think everyone on here should realize
this. As professionals in the occupational therapy field we should all
understand the importance of multidimensional levels of a person's
being, and not just their profession or education level.
I worked as a pharmacy technician for five years during my
undergrad. I did EVERYTHING (and knew everyone) in the pharmacy i worked
in, including transcribing prescriptions, compounding drugs, counseling
patients, counted pills, inventory, scheduling, AND all the
wonderful little housekeeping duties. All the pharmacists did was look over the
medication in the bottle i counted out with the label i put on it, and
put their initials on the receipt attached to the bag, and they got all
the credit. But they were the ones on the line if i counted the
wrong medications or the wrong number, or heaven forbid someone die due
to the meds. They went to school to be pharmacists, and therefore got
the recognition whether it be right or wrong. However, i knew that no
matter how much i worked and did all the "dirty" work, they were more
knowledgeable than i was in many areas. Although this is not an expect replication of the situation, I understand the frustration!
Also, i have had the opportunity to work and observe many OTR's, as
well as a few COTA's and in my experience they all got along very well
and respected one another equally, as it should be!!! I think instead
of everyone getting on here and trying to compete for the better
paragraph containing the many aspects of a power trip; you should be
putting that much time and effort into the respect you give to the
people you are bashing and you will get the respect and recognition
you deserve in return. If all your looking for is a "title" change in
your profession, you are posting and writing to the wrong people. The
OTR's and COTA's you are writing to and trying to cause debates with
are not the ones responsible for your job "title" that you seem to have
such a huge problem with!! Have a great day and to everyone on here
who seems to have such a negative outlook on your job and the people
you work with, maybe you should look into a career change, because
these negative attitudes reflect and show through in your job and
discourage others AND YOUR CLIENTS so get off yourselves for a while!