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Essential job functions are the fundamental duties of a position: the things a person holding the job absolutely must be able to do. This helps to determine whether or not a person is being discriminated against when trying to get a job. If they can not perform the essential job functions, they are not qualified for the job.

I hope I'm not the only one freaking out about job hunting in the future. I found this article that will help prepare us for job interviews with some sample questions. It is always good to be prepared.

This post comes from the same OT based blog from my last diigo posting, but with all of this resume/cover letter/job talk and coming up in the very near future, I wanted to share this post as well! It is very helpful. It goes into types of questions we may encounter in a job interview and how you should go about answering them! Very helpful info to add to our portfolio of info!

OT made the list at # 11 out of 100 top jobs!

Our occupational therapists aim to make your job easier and better. We define your "job" as anything you do to occupy your time, and which you feel is important to your quality of life.( Cancer Treatment Center of America)

Power Point presentation for managing job-related stressers

The Job Accommodation Network put this information together because the number of workers over 65 is going to increase dramatically as the baby boomers age. The benefits for hiring an older worker are listed as well as the laws protecting workers. This is a nice resource for those older workers to know what rights they have and what accommodations are even available. Some accommodations cover ADLs, weakness or fatigue, hearing limitations, vision limitations, psychological issues, to name a few. I thought it was really helpful that a few situations were presented with possible solutions. Also, for the consumer, is a link to products for accommodation options.

This is JANs website (The Job Accommodation Network). The accommodation information by Disability: A to Z provides a list of impairments and allows you to click on the one you are interested in. It then provides information of what types of work accommodations may need to be implemented and resources to find equipment.

This is a link to an awesome website for The Fontana Center.  The Fontana Center is a center for work rehabilitation.  It is owned and run by an OTR and also hires COTAs, massage therapy, and fitness experts.  This place is very holistic.  It offers seminars and workshops on ergonomics and preventing work place injury.  It also prescreens employees for companies to make sure their candidate can handle the physical aspects of the job that they are applying for…this saves the company lots of money in the long run.  The facility offers functional capacity evaluations and work hardening programs.  It also has fitness classes including water aerobics/therapy, yoga, and even classes for seniors.  This is great for fall prevention! I love this place…I wonder how many places like this exist in the US?

This story is about a firefighter who lost his arm fighting a fire. His arm was amputated and the he was fitted with a prosthetic. He worked with an OT and prosthetic forever! He wanted to be able to return to his dream job of fighting a fire! He worked very hard and he had his share of his ups and downs. I am not going to tell you all the ending, so please read it. It is not long at all and will take you 10 minutes at the max.

Occupational Therapy play a very important role with patients dealing with a cancer diagnosis. OT can help with energy conservation issues, pain, weakness, psychosocial, and physical impairments. Quality of life and independence are key. OT can be of service to people newly diagnosed, in cancer treatment, or in hospice. What I needed reminding of was that OT can help those that have survived, especially the psychosocial aspect.

This article discusses the specific areas and goals that occupational therapists may address with cancer patients. I thought the writer did a great job explaining what occupational therapy is and why the field is so important. This would be a good resource for later on if I ever go on to interview for a job in oncology, would be a nice review of how impactful OT can be.

It's difficult to juggle a job while in college, so that's why it's extremely important to find ways to manage your stress -- especially when papers are due and exams are coming up. Here are some tips on how you can reduce stress while in college:...

Introduction: There is a limit to the amount of work that you can do on your own. There is only so much value that you can deliver to your organization without the help of other people. If you are successful in your career, at some stage the demands on you will become greater than you are able to cope with on your own.

Coping with work stress in today's uncertain climate For workers everywhere, the troubled economy may feel like an emotional roller coaster. "Layoffs" and "budget cuts" have become bywords in the workplace, and the result is increased fear, uncertainty, and higher levels of stress.

Who would have thought a National Council on Aging! There are all kinds of resource linked to this sight. I can see how this could be a great resource for those who are aging or caring for those who are. If you scroll down to the section on "I want to stay healthy" you can click on a list of ways to "restart living." This section helps those who may need to re-evaluate their life and provides direction to encourage them to recognize that they still have something to live for

This is a great site for the older adult or caregiver to find numerous resources. From money management, transportation, job searches, fall preventions and much more. I know I will refer to it in my future practices and thought I would share.

This may be old news to some individuals but these are some pretty cool feature for individuals with certain, as Jennifer Isham would say, diffabilities. As OTA it is our job to keep our client connected and active in the activities they love. What better way to accomplish this than by teaching them these neat feature on their telephone which make the phones accessible. Communication through the telephone is necessary and with the majority of phones being smart phones they also needs to be implemented as an assistive device to help individuals throughout the day. Not only are the accessibility features very useful but other features on the smart phone can serve as a useful tool for some cognitive deficits such as short term memory loss. For example, the phone can remind them of appointments or to take medications. The Android system, whether you own an LG G3, Galaxy S4 or Nexus 5, has a number of accessibility options built in for those hard of hearing, suffering from a vision impairment or any other number of other conditions that might make the standard operation of your Android difficult.

I have become increasingly interested in the topic if research lately. This article does a good job of showing how some simply misrepresent data and leads me to believe more in looking for the source of the research as well as the personal interest the researcher may have on the subject. Research and the source of it can give us a lot of information. Not all research is reliable though.

Returning to work following a motor vehicle accident can be difficult, regardless of the type of work that you do. When you've had an injury, even relatively sedentary jobs can feel strenuous. It is important to recognize that an ergonomic evaluation of your workstation is available to you through your automobile insurance's accident benefits, before or after your return to work.

This is an article on the stand up desk Teri mentioned in class the other day. My fiancés place of work is giving the employees the option of having one of these as well and he opted to try it out. He says he can tell a difference in back pain when he stands vs. sitting, I assume it is because he is using better posture while standing. Since it was mentioned in class and he is using it I wanted to see if I could find other benefits to using a stand up desk while at work. I found this article explaining more benefits of using the stand up desk and I found it to be a very interesting read, and wishing I would have had this option at my desk job before I started school.

A short step by step video of a handyman walking through a home and describing modifications needed to make it wheelchair friendly :) He does a great job of showing why what is already there needs to be modified. It points out things most of us wouldn't think of as being an issue.

I was searching for information on tertiary prevention when I came across this website. I got completely sidetracked. This article talks about a study that was done on strength training related to reducing work related injuries. Strength training was actually encouraged on the job. Reminded me of how my husband took an empty space at his work and turned it into a place for his co-workers to work out when they wanted to. They have a couple of punching bags and mats and even have a boxing instructor and Krav Maga instructor that teaches them a couple of times a week. I like that there are studies backing up strength training at work.