I see many COTAs who enter the profession for the salary. Some may not know what they are getting into; others have done their research and are aware of what the job entails. I definitely know that I was not fully aware of some of the things I would do over my years as a COTA, but that's another story.   Yes the pay is decent as a ...

  Working for so many years as a therapist I always knew my side of the bed. You always wonder about many of your patients though, how did they get here, what have they been through, what do they think and expect being on the other side, in the bed?   Over my years I have definitely seen my share of poor care, patients with bed ...

Along with all the chaos that accompanies a capstone project, additional pressing issues come to the front lines. Within the past few months, the subject of G-Codes has taken up a majority of time in regard to educating ourselves, clinical and ancillary staff, as well as a busy IT department. In preparation for a mandatory July 1 compliance date, ...

I was working with an elderly female on transfer safety. After about 20 minutes, she understood the sequencing involved in standing up from a wheelchair. This was important -- she had fallen multiple times because she had forgotten to lock the brakes on the chair. I was satisfied that she was safe and we proceeded with other aspects of mobility. ...

In past posts, I've expressed frustration at volunteering for various opportunities within the APTA and the Neurology Section. A few months ago, I was nominated for a position on the nominating committee for the stroke special interest group. The results arrived today. I wasn't elected. I wasn't surprised. One of the questions nominees were asked ...

  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, ...

  Something that was really missed from my early days in OT is the use of crafts. My schooling included two semesters of Media, which entailed all forms of craft making related to specific diagnoses. These days with tight budgets there are very few craft activities used in OT treatment.   Going back to the early days of OT, crafts ...

I was at the grocery store a few days ago. There was one cashier and a long line of people. One person told the cashier what she already knew, ''There's a line going out the door.'' I stood silent waiting my turn. The guy behind me seemed impatient and was making grunting noises while holding a case of beer. Clearly he had somewhere important to ...

Last week in his post, fellow ADVANCE blogger Dean Metz shared some good news. CMS has ruled the need for skilled intervention, not functional improvement, makes therapy reimbursable. This means, as he pointed out, patients with chronic conditions can receive treatment without first experiencing an exacerbation. This will undoubtedly result in an ...

A report from the Commonwealth Fund was just highlighted in the press. It's a remarkable comparison of healthcare costs between developed nations. It shouldn't be surprising that the United States spent more on health care per capita than any other developed country. Unfortunately all that spending is not resulting in superior quality of ...