Best and Worst Parts of Being an Occupational Therapist (OT)

Micki Kleven, OTD, OTR/L, ATP/SMS

As an OT who focuses on assistive technology and wheelchair fitting, my favorite part of the job is helping people gain independence and watch the joy on their faces when they realize they are no longer depending on others for their mobility. This leads to them being able to participate more freely in the activities that are meaningful to them, which is such a joy to watch!

I also love being able to connect individuals with community resources that can bring meaningful relationships into their lives, such as adaptive sports or peer support groups.

Ashley Ly, OTD, OTR/L

My favorite part of being an occupational therapist is seeing patients do the things they thought were impossible! Some of these moments are simple and go unnoticed by most, like a child making themselves an after-school snack. Other moments are momentous by any standard, like a young teen playing piano again after brain surgery.

Regardless of the context, creating the space for patients and their families to celebrate these milestones is one of the great privileges that comes with being an occupational therapist.

Trevor St. Clair, OTD, MS, OTR/L

My favorite part of being an occupational therapist is getting to really know the people that I am helping. I feel like it is important to build a good rapport to ensure goals and interventions are client-centered. There is no greater feeling than seeing some achieve goals that are meaningful to them.

Making people feel good again makes for very rewarding work. Imagine someone who is convinced that they can never do something that they love again, and you get to give them the gift showing them a way that they can do it. To me, there is no better job – well, calling – than being an occupational therapist.

Kate Turner, OTR/L, MAOT, OTD

Occupational therapy is a profession that looks into all aspects of human existence. I was so excited when I found out that there are not any “off limits” areas for OTs when working with clients. Our scope of practice truly includes everything from physical health, mental health, social health, spiritual health and cognitive health. This allows the OT to examine what it means for an individual to fully participate in their lives.

The flexibility that this brings facilitates OTs to spend quality time with clients, focusing on the issues and challenges important to each person. The ability to look into someone’s physical, mental, spiritual and social well-being has allowed me to connect with people on a deeper level to more fully understand their needs and to gain a holistic perspective into their lives.

Micki Kleven, OTD, OTR/L, ATP/SMS

The hardest part of the job for me is dealing with insurance denials, as I want my patients to get what they need as soon as possible to improve their quality of life. Of course, I’m always willing to help my patients appeal these decisions; however, it’s frustrating to have to justify something that is so obviously needed by my patient.

Ashley Ly, OTD, OTR/L

The hardest part, but also a gift, is sitting with families in their grief. We spend our lives imagining all of the things we will do and all that our children will do. When a major health event, a diagnosis or an accident changes those expectations, it is important to acknowledge the loss.

Holding space for these feelings is an important and challenging aspect of being an occupational therapist. Being willing and able to be present for clients in these scenarios creates a path toward sharing the joy of doing, being and becoming.

Trevor St. Clair, OTD, MS, OTR/L

I have found the lack of awareness about the things that occupational therapists can address has been the hardest part of being an occupational therapist. It is very important that we advocate for other professionals to realize the scope of our profession.

We have been making great strides in recent years. Over my career, I have encountered more and more people who know and appreciate what occupational therapists do. We are the best kept secret in healthcare, and I intend to change that by educating the next generation of occupational therapists to advocate for the profession!

From my perspective, the more people who know about occupational therapy, the more people potentially get help to do the things that they want and need to do every day.

Kate Turner, OTR/L, MAOT, OTD

The hardest part of being an OT for me is when clients have unrealistic expectations about the timing or the extent of healing or return to prior levels of function following an injury or illness or caused by a disease pathology.

When a person is living with a challenge that has created flux in their life, they sometimes ask how long it will take before they will be over it or until they get back to “normal.” These conversations are difficult, and the OT wants to be as positive and realistic as possible.

An example would be a person recovering from a newly acquired injury such as a cerebral vascular accident. This person might ask, “How long will it be until my right arm returns to normal?” This is such a tough question to answer because every person will be different, and it is dependent on the extent of the neurological damage.

Over the years, I have tried many ways to communicate difficult information to clients with as much empathy and grace as possible. I approach each situation as unique and sometimes do a better job than other times of communicating to my clients that I care about them, that I hear them, and that I understand them.