RSCC Occupational Therapy Assistant Program

We have been debating a lot lately if it is okay to use heat with patients who have RA or not. I have found several articles on the subject, none indicating that you can NEVER use heat. This article does state that heat shouldn't be used when inflammation is already present but that heat is okay if the patient is not swollen, has extreme stiffness, and is in pain. The article talks about other techniques to try such as cold therapy and compression.

This is an old, short 1916 film with no sound showing soldiers, who are amputees, wheelchair racing, playing tug-of-war, marching, and dancing. This is conjecture -- but maybe there are reconstruction aides helping them out -- the people who helped in the development of occupational therapy. Also, this film shows the amputees as NOT helpless, having fun and very much functional.

I was reading Early Chapter 33 Amputation and Prosthetics, and there was a paragraph regarding future developments and plans of action. Here, Osseointegration was mentioned, and I had never heard of this term. So, here is an article that describes the process - basically an implant is inserted into the bone of the residual limb. The prosthetic can be attached to this and a socket is not needed. This article talks about the benefits and drawbacks.

This is an inspirational story about a man from Nigeria named Sani Muntari, who acquired polio as a child. He grew up to be a teacher and a father and now campaigns to eradicate polio in his country and plays scooter soccer.

You can search this website for proposed laws and what stage they are in during the process of being passed. You can also get email alerts when actions are taken on selected bills. This is an easy way to track proposed health care laws.

This video demonstrates thermoplastic splint fabrication very similar to what we did in lab. I thought it would serve as a good reminder. It also includes fabrication on an outrigger.

Have you ever wondered what the difference is of the "hump" on a computer mouse? I have honestly never given it much thought, until I read this article. There is a front hump and rear hump. This particular article talked about which would be better for someone wearing a wrist splint. In this day and age carpal tunnel is a huge problem for many people and they have to wear wrist splints while working on the computer. So which is better? Read and find out!

This link shows the many side effects cancer can have. OT can help! I honestly did not think about OT and cancer until this unit of study.

This occupational therapist has worked with breast cancer survivors for over 20 years. She talks about how OT helps make tasks "easier, safer, and possible". She helps them deal with the pain, weakness and fatigue associated with cancer. I love how she describes occupational therapy!

This website has many different conditions that may affect clients sexual function. It highlights OT's involvement in these various conditions.

This is a cool site over all but this page is about parasthesia, causes interventions and symptoms. What is cool about this site is everything is hyperlinked so information is easily accessible on any terms.

This is a marketing page for an orthotic manufacturing company and displays their many products and services but what I really like about the company is their specializing in military veterans with disabilities resulting from combat related injuries.

This article talks about the social and economical impact of RA on our society. It speaks about things like accumulating medical bills combined with lost wages and its impact on the overall economy. I find this interesting because it shows how wide of an impact we can make in OT if we are to promote more and help bring a lot of these numbers down.

This article from AOTA really hit home with me. My mom had a stem cell transplant in November of 2012, and it saved her life. Your immune system is severely compromised during a stem cell transplant, and because of that she had limited access to people, and places outside the hospital. My mom is an adult, and she had a hard time with the limited social interaction, so I can only imagine how hard it is for a child to go through a stem cell transplant and be able to play with their peers at school or at a playground. I know a lot of us will not deal with cases as severe as a stem cell transplant, but it is still encouraging to know that occupational therapy can help. The therapist in the article worked with the kids to make sure they did not develop muscle weakness, or lose ROM while they were in the hospital. This article really made me appreciate the holistic care that OT provides, regardless of your age.

This video reminded me of some things we discussed yesterday in Peds class. After watching the video, what kind of things do you think the OTA was trying to target in this session??

This is a video of a man who had severe burns. It shows how he puts on shoes and dons and doffs a jacket. It also includes some neat adaptive equipment he has, including a fishing pole and bowling ball. I didn't even realize he was wearing a prosthesis at first.

This page discusses the differences between work hardening and work conditioning. It also has information about success rates and cost effectiveness.

I wouldn't say that any of us feel "stuck", but I know we all start to feel stressed out towards the end of the semester. The author of this article, Joy Springer, gives some great attempts on ways to make it through. I needed to read the tips in this article, and I hope it helps some of you as well. We can do it, and we are here to support each other :)

I found this article when I was making my marketing webpage for practice management. A lot of children who are effected with long term illness or disease fall behind in their development. Occupational therapy helps them catch up and reach important developmental milestones so that they may be more successful in play and learning. This pamphlet is for parents of children at St. Jude explaining what OT is and how it can help their children.

I found this article on the AOTA website. I didn't realize that occupational therapy is one of the only professions qualified to work with lymphedema. I thought it was really interesting how the writer pointed out that occupational therapy gives control back to patients who are in a very uncontrollable situation. Sometimes when working with patients, it is not about saving their lives but about helping them live their life with the most quality and happiness while they have life to live.