Occupational therapy assistants help increase quality of life
For most, getting dressed or making breakfast are normal everyday responsibilities.
However, common tasks such as these are considered major successes for certified occupational therapy assistants and their patients.
Certified occupational therapy assistants (COTAs) are part of a team that works with a varied population of patients who have suffered injury, illness, or lost some function through the aging process.
"COTAs work under the guidance of a registered occupational therapist, who completes an initial evaluation making a complete assessment to the patients individual needs and determines a plan of care that the COTA carries out through various means of functional tasks, such as working through difficulties with home care, meal preparation, self-care, etc., and ensuring that the patient is safe in his or her environment to complete these tasks," said Donna M. Rodriguez, a certified occupational therapy assistant at DM Rodriguez Home Therapy.
"COTAs also teach compensatory techniques and the use of assistive or adaptive devices to compensate for functions the patient is no longer able to complete as they were prior to their injury or illness. Their role is to help the individual regain or maintain as much independence as possible."