Occupational Therapy Courses Online That Can Boost Your Career
As an occupational therapist, it is important to stay up to date on the latest information and developments for assessment and treatment options. Additionally, you will need to complete courses in order to maintain your licensure. Here are 15 online courses that will make it easy to stay at the top of your field and complete your required professional development credits.
Occupational Therapy CEUs: OccupationalTherapy.Com
This aptly named website has a variety of courses to provide you with the opportunity to earn CEUs to count toward maintaining your licensure. The site offers over 500 courses that cover a variety of topics relevant to specific age groups and treatment settings in order to enhance your knowledge in areas that directly apply to your employment or interests.
For those working with clients recovering from an illness that has impacted their motor function, Translating and Implementing Motor Learning Approaches for Neurorehabilitation offers current information regarding treatment. In addition to covering specific therapeutic best practices, this course also offers suggestions for increasing the client’s motivation and adherence to the protocols.
If you are beginning your work in early intervention, Pediatric Primer: Development and OT Considerations for Children From in Utero to Age 5 provides an overview of treating this age group. In addition to covering physical development during these years, the course will also cover common atypicality and how to support children using occupational therapy practices.
Positioning for Function: The Trunk and Extremities covers the important considerations in ensuring the proper position for your clients who use wheelchairs. In addition to discussing a neutral trunk position, this course will cover where to place the limbs for maximum function and stability.
Since many clients with neurological impairments experience swallowing difficulties, Dysphagia Evaluation and Treatment Recommendations is a key course for those working with these individuals. In addition to covering signs of dysphagia, this course will discuss treatment approaches grounded in current research and best practices.
In addition to treating motor delays in children with neurological disorders, occupational therapists often also support parents and educators with the client’s sensory processing. Self-Calming Techniques for Children with Autism delves into approaches that can address sensory and behavior needs through empowering the child with strategies.
American Occupational Therapy Association: Aota.Org
The American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) is a professional organization dedicated to furthering the practice and education of occupational therapists. As part of their mission, they provide access to courses through their website that allows occupational therapists to earn credits toward maintaining licensure. The courses cover a wide variety of topics, from general overviews to treatments for specific diagnoses, offering everyone just what they need for their specific situation.
For those currently working in or looking to branch out to primary care settings, Designing Occupational Therapy Services in a Primary Care Setting: Successful Strategies and Lessons Learned can provide a blueprint for your role. From the identified needs for an occupational therapist in the primary care office to the hurdles you may face in integrating yourself as part of the evaluative and treatment team, this course will assist you in creating your place.
Regardless of the population that you serve, one of the key facets of your job is helping your client generalize the skills they practice with you to other settings, particularly the home. Using the Occupational Therapy Practice Guidelines for Home Modifications will support you in assessing the environment and needs of the client and developing appropriate modifications to increase functionality and reduce the likelihood of injury.
Another key component of occupational therapy is teaching and liaising efficiently with the client, family, and health or educational team. Health Literacy: Effective Client Communication and Education offers a comprehensive overview of communication techniques and strategies for educating the client as well as those who work with them.
In addition to educating clients and families, providing reasonable and motivating therapeutic activities is essential for adherence to the treatment plan. Creative Cost Effective, Easy Exercises for Patients provides suggestions for household items that are engaging and inexpensive in order to encourage the client and the family to perform the prescribed tasks.
Medbridge Education
In addition to providing resources for creating treatment plans and educating occupational therapy clients, this organization also provides courses that allow occupational therapists to earn CEUs. You must purchase one of the membership plans through the site in order to access the content, but Medbridge helps you to track and submit your CEUs to the licensing board, making initial certification or renewal much easier.
If you are new to the field or want a refresher on diagnostic procedures, A Primer on Examination and Treatment Metrics will cover the basics. The course discusses the Pain and Disabilities Drivers Management Model and how to use it to develop interventions to obtain a superior outcome for the client.
For those who work with clients on independence in personal hygiene, Activities of Daily Living Bootcamp: Toileting and Bathing covers everything you need to support these individuals. In addition to the task analysis of skills needed to complete these activities, the course also discusses how to further individualize for those with cognitive and visual impairments.
Many occupational therapy clients present with vestibular-related needs, which can be assessed and addressed through the strategies presented in Vestibular Examination: Oculomotor Testing. The course covers different types of assessments to determine a vestibular-ocular deficiency and how to trace it back to the cause.
Wild Iris Medical Education, Inc.
This site offers a variety of continuing education courses on topics in each of the medical disciplines, including occupational therapy. Each of the courses on this site are approved by the AOTA and accepted by the National Board of Certification for Occupational Therapy (NBCOT).
In some states, occupational therapists are required to complete ethics courses in order to obtain and maintain licensure. Ethics and Law for Occupational Therapists and Occupational Therapy Assistants will cover the values, principles, and standards of conduct set forth by the AOTA and fulfills licensure requirements for several states.
For those working in medical settings, many of the occupational therapy patients may be advanced in their age. Elder Care covers the most common changes that impact elderly clients and that need to be considered in assessing their needs and developing their treatment.
Medical Errors: Prevention and Patient Safety is an important course that discusses the latest strategies for preventing mistakes in diagnosis and treatment of clients. Additionally, the course covers strategies for improving communication and education of individuals and families in order to improve outcomes.