As the number of schools increase that teach the OTA program, are the graduates able to find jobs? One source I follow says no, but others say they are finding job offers. The one common thread I am finding though is some COTAs are completing three or more interviews before landing a job.   I do see changes in Medicare happening, ...

 At work today another staff member cautioned me to wash my hands often, as there seemed to be a bug in the building. Back in school I remember the importance that was stressed with proper hand washing techniques, before and after treatment with each patient, before and after eating, and after any ADL's. As a teacher I remember teaching the ...

  Some time ago I wrote a blog about COTA salaries, and in it I mentioned that with the increased cost of schooling and decrease in salaries that soon we may see a shortage of people seeking to enter the field. Was that a bad prediction?   The cost of the two required years of OTA school can vary greatly. At the local community ...

  Just the other day I was talking with one of the nurses I work with, and we got into a discussion of wasted dollars in healthcare. One of the patients was upset because for three days in a row the lab nurse came to draw blood. Another patient was mad because they were being sent out to the hospital for a routine procedure that could have ...

  This is a topic I've covered before, but I've always wanted to show the emblem I was given after passing my national exam. It was actually enclosed in the envelope with my passing test results. My certification exam was completed under AOTCB (American Occupational Therapy Certification Board) which used to be a part of AOTA (American ...

  As a COTA you'll find some days can be a bit more stressful than others. I guess today was one of those days because I came home tired and frustrated, some from work, some from the drive home, some from a stop I had to make on the way home. Fortunately most days don't go like this. I really do enjoy being a COTA, but to let you know there ...

What a crazy week!  I started my final fieldwork placement in an acute care setting at a major hospital.  Talk about culture shock.  It is a whole different world there and I am scrambling to learn what I need to survive the next 7 weeks.  Everyone keeps telling me that I will see a lot there.  I have no doubt about ...

Well I am finally done with fieldwork, have applied for my temporary license and have started preparing for the NBCOT exam. Where I live I must be certified in order to continue working so it is a mandatory process for me. I am nervous for the exam, we took a practice exam before going out on fieldwork and I did not pass it unfortunately it told ...

     This week I finally started feeling like a therapist.  I have been taking the lead in most of the sessions and have even been left alone to run a few sessions on my own.  I have come up with the majority of the interventions and am currently writing all of the notes.  It’s pretty exciting!  I’ve been ...

As I and the group of students I am with finish up our fieldwork we as a group are having difficulty saying goodbye. It is difficult first because we are all leaving on different days and second because we all have our own ways we think we should say goodbye. It seems to me the goodbye has been a little drawn out and should have been planned more ...