20 tasks, each one witnessed by the sources that watched the job — and behind every one, a prompt you can use tonight.
A day usually mixes one-on-one therapy, paperwork, and team meetings. You might see 6–10 clients a day for assessments, hands-on treatment, or training on adaptive equipment like splints or reachers.
Between clients you write progress notes in the clinic’s EHR (for example, eClinicalWorks or PrognoCIS), update measurable goals, and join interdisciplinary meetings with nurses, PTs, and social workers.
Most clinics use an EHR such as eClinicalWorks, Bizmatics PrognoCIS, or Casamba Smart to document assessments, goals, and outcomes. You’ll enter treatment plans and re-evaluations there.
You’ll also use Microsoft Word and Excel for reports and spreadsheets, FileMaker Pro for some databases, and occasional specialty software like Crick Clicker 4 or computer drawing programs for cognitive or fine-motor exercises.
Write goals that say who will do what, under what conditions, and by when. Example: “Patient will don a jacket independently with a button hook in 8 minutes or less, 4/5 trials, within 6 weeks.”
Enter these goals into the EHR (eClinicalWorks or PrognoCIS) and link them to functional tasks — work, leisure, or self-care — so reviewers see clear progress and medical necessity.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), there were about 162,450 occupational therapists employed and the median pay was $100,330 per year.
BLS lists the lowest tenth at $71,690 and the top tenth at $131,950. Local pay varies by setting (hospital, school, home health) and experience.
OTs focus on helping people do daily activities — dressing, cooking, work tasks, play, and social participation — often using adaptive equipment and environmental changes.
PTs focus more on movement, strength, and mobility. Both collaborate on goals and use the same medical records, but OT emphasizes routines, cognition, and participation in occupations.
You can use AI to draft notes or generate activity ideas, but never paste identifiable patient data into public AI services. Keep PHI inside your secure EHR (eClinicalWorks, PrognoCIS, Casamba) and follow your employer’s HIPAA rules.
If you use AI, remove names, dates, and identifiers. Have a supervisor approve any AI-assisted care ideas before applying them to a patient.
Practice standardized assessments, writing measurable goals, and training patients with adaptive equipment (e.g., button hooks, walkers, ADL aids). Be fast and clear with documentation in eClinicalWorks or your workplace EHR.
Also build teamwork and basic Excel/Word skills for reports, and learn a few cognitive rehab tools like Crick Clicker 4 or simple computer programs to improve memory and sequencing.