Occupational therapy is a profession in medicine that is concerned with the promotion of health and the well-being of individuals with various limitations in life such as physical impairments. According to the American Occupational Therapy Association, occupational therapy can be defined as making use of work, self-care, and other activities to enable individuals to improve and increase their development and minimize the limitations that may be posed by the physical disability (Haledon, 2001, p13).
The areas of occupational therapy are divided into physical and mental health although these divisions involve very many activities within the medical field. Occupational therapy is a field that stems from occupational science and links medicine with other fields such as social sciences and anthropology. It generally involves the analyses of an individual’s physical, mental and also social aspects and helps them to resume various activities within their environment. This involves a series of procedures such as referrals, gathering of information, identification of needs, setting goals, planning necessary actions, continuous assessments, outcome analyses, interventions and post-program reviews (Trombly, 2007, p26).
Origins of occupational therapy can be traced back to Europe’s age of enlightenment in 1700. During this period there was an evolution of very many ideas in respect to the individuals who suffered mental illness. The mentally disabled persons were considered a big threat to the larger community and for this reason they were locked up to ensure the safety of other individuals within the society. Two scholars Phillipe Pinel and William Tube came up with new ideas that were posed to challenge the beliefs in society concerning the mentally ill. Soon there started to emerge a new understanding and a better approach in the treating of mental illness.
In 1793, Phillipe Pinel initiated the moral treatment and occupation as a better way of treating the mentally ill. According to him moral treatment helped to treat someone’s emotions and occupation helps the individuals to realize their goals by making use of their energy, interest, time and also their attentions. He encouraged individuals to get involved with physical exercise, literature, music and other activities that would help them reduce emotional stress. Soon it became clear that occupation served as a way of reducing emotional stress and improving the abilities of individuals in performing their daily activities (Sames, 2004, p19).
During the same era, a retreat center was founded by William Tube in England in support of occupational activities which he believed they would maximize the individual functions and minimize the mental illness symptoms. In this center, he encouraged the individuals to learn and involve themselves with various employment activities. The period of 1840-1860 is referred to as the age of golden years where the moral treatment and occupation therapy was highly advocated in the American hospitals. During this period, art and craft activities were the most commonly used occupation activities which helped the patients to find a feeling of relaxation and productivity (Cutler, 2002, p08).
The early nineteenth century was a great threat to the newly found field of medicine. This was due to the effects of the war which almost rendered the ideas of occupational therapy extinct. The situation was later rescued by a nurse by the name Susan Tracy who had great interest in specializing in the occupational therapy field. She extended her knowledge to other student nurses where she trained them in the use of activities in treating patients.
She changed the term of moral treatment to occupational nurse. In 1914, two other individuals George E Barton and William Dunton founded other organizations that enabled more individuals who had interest in the occupational therapy to acquire the required skills. Occupational therapy saw its development as a formal profession in 1917 during the Second World War. The year saw the foundation of the National Society for the Promotion of Occupational Therapy (NSPOT).
The field then grew rapidly though the 1920’s until 1930’s when it was met by the challenges of the great depression. Occupational therapy developed to be closely associated and incorporated into medicine. The field attracted a lot of scientific research as more knowledge and ideas were ideal for its success. The NSPOT organization was then re-named as the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) as it is known today (Trombly, 2007, p36).
The world war one and two posed a lot of difficulties in medicine due to the financial difficulties and also low staff levels in the medical centers. At the same time there were a great number of soldiers who suffered various injuries during the war. The situation then became very demanding of the occupational therapist that would develop programs that would ensure treatment of the soldiers. The number of the injured solders became very alarming between the period of 1940’s and the 1960’s.
The soldiers suffered both physical and mental injuries and the demand for the occupational therapist intensified. The role of the occupational therapy therefore assumed a new course where the occupational therapists were not only treating the mentally ill but also the physically disabled such as those with spinal injuries, amputations among others (Cutler, 2002, p15). The year 1947 saw the first publications of literature on the occupational therapy.
The first one was the Journal of Occupational Therapy and Rehabilitation followed by the Willard & Spackman’s Principles of Occupational Therapy. In the same period occupational therapy was recognized in the military and this served as a great opportunity for sourcing funds to support the education and training of more individuals in to the profession. The personnel who were members of the American Occupational Therapy Association benefited from the training of leadership skills (Sames, 2004, p27).
In 1956, the Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant (COTA) was formed as an assisting body into the field. It acted as a way of solving and reducing the problem of high demand for occupational therapists in the market. The occupational therapists then were required to attend school for a period of 4 to 6 years but COTA required very little training. The field of medicine developed a lot into various areas of specialization. The field of occupational therapy was not an exception and the duties of the occupational therapists became more intensified into fields such as treating children in the pediatrics departments and other development disabilities.
In 1965, the Social Security Act was amended and Medicare now incorporated occupational therapy services for the admitted patients. A further development was seen in 1975 when a new act on the Handicapped was passed. This enabled the education on the occupational therapy to be inclusive in the school curricula (Yerxa, 1989, p31). The period of 1980’s and 1990’s assumed a new direction for the field of occupational therapy.
The focus on the patients graduated from simply administering treatment to improving the quality of life of the patients. More studies and ideas came up as more researchers and individuals involved themselves in finding more knowledge. The therapist also got more involved in advocating for prevention measures that rendered individuals to have physical limitations. The field also got more involved in screening of patients and advocating various measures of ensuring maintenance of health (Hagedorn, 2001, p33).
The 21st century has seen the occupation therapy being involved in various activities within the medical field focusing on individuals of different age groups and also different disabilities. Most of the physical disabilities can now be adequately handled due to the advantage of the technological advancements in medicine. Most of the defects such as birth defects, development disabilities, sensory dysfunctions, down syndrome, stroke, arthritis, dementia, cardiac failure, diabetes among others can be easily be handled by the physicians (Trombly, 2007, p45). The field has developed to meet the needs of various individuals in the society who have chronic illnesses or disabilities in coping with the life challenges.
Occupational therapy now benefits more individuals in the society than in the earlier periods. Physical defects can now be corrected and individuals can be able to adapt to life again without much difficulties. The therapists have developed various gadgets that were not available in the earlier period which can be used by the physically challenged to adapt to life. The patients can also receive more formal training on coping with their challenges from clinics and also the specialized education centers for the physically challenged. The field today focuses not only on the patients but also on the families of such individuals and the society at large.
More educative programs on prevention and maintenance of health are on the increase and people are more aware of the availability of the programs. The developments in the field have enabled the service to be offered internationally and more people are able to benefit from it at affordable rates. Training of the occupational therapists has improved and the requirements for qualification are now high. Training now includes a lot of course work in biology, psychology and practical clinical experience of occupational therapy. The students then must under go an examination that is given by the National Board. On passing this examination the individuals can now be certified as Registered Occupational Therapists. Today a full qualification in occupational therapy requires a bachelors or a master’s degree in the field (Schell, 2008, p18).
The field of medicine today would not be the same without occupational therapy. The field carries the sole responsibility of bringing back the capacity to be better adapted to the environment, especially for those with various disabilities and chronic diseases. The occupational therapist takes the honor of enhancing the patient’s ability to be active and participate in various activities in the environment.
This is done by helping the individuals to use various physical devices such as wheel chairs to support themselves as they participate in community work. The occupational therapists on studying the conditions of the patients can also modify the environment to be more conducive for the individuals in adapting various roles (Johnson, 2002, p24). This helps individuals to be able to re-engage or engage in activities they were doing before or have never done due to limitations posed by disability, and be more productive persons in the society.
The occupational therapist have come a long way in helping the individuals and their families to reduce emotional stress and get a feeling of acceptance and pride of who they are. They become more independent and can be able to become active people both in the society and also in the economy. Occupational therapy serves to realize the fact that all individuals in the society are important through making use of their abilities and developing treatment plans that involve regaining, developing and maintaining skills that are useful in helping individuals with body limitations live life to the fullest just like other people within the society (Schell, 2008, p28).
References
Ann Turner, Margaret Foster and Sybil E. Johnson (2002). Occupational Therapy and Physical Dysfunction: Principles, Skills and Practice. Elsevier Health Sciences Publishers.
EJ Yerxa et al (1989). An introduction to occupational science, a foundation for occupational therapy in the 21st century. Haworth Press.
Elizabeth Blesedell, Crepeau Ellen S Cohn and Barbara A Boyt Schell (2008). Willard and Spackman’s Occupational Therapy. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins Publishers.
Franklin Stein and Susan K. Cutler (2002). Psychosocial Occupational Therapy. A Holistic Approach. Cengage Learning Publishers.
Karen M. Sames (2004). Documenting Occupational Therapy Practice. Prentice Hall.
Mary Vining, Radomski and Catherine A Trombly (2007). Occupational Therapy for Physical Dysfunction. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins Publishers.
Rosemary Hagedorn (2001). Foundations for Practice in Occupational Therapy. Elsevier Health Sciences Publishers.