RSCC Occupational Therapy Assistant Program

I found this question, on the AOTA web site, of whether OT practitioners could assess a clients gait while assessing mobility. It indicated the possibility of crossing into PT's scope of practice but also included ways and why certain assessments can be incorporate in the scope of OT through functional mobility.

I love this website. It should be titled "Restrictions Made Easy." The Occupational Therapy Department at the University of Washington Medical Center has created this website to provide handouts for multiple conditions to include sternal precautions, ADLs following surgery of the abdomen, self-care after breast reconstruction, etc. This website will make it easy to accurately advise and treat our patients.

This video was very helpful for me to be able to see not only the hip precautions, but also the recommended movements as well as hearing the different predicaments which might lead to one being in those positions.

Relevant to chapter 33 for Exam II, I found this article explaining early postoperative prosthesis for transtibial lower extremity amputations. It has pictures of the prosthetic and wrappings, as well as, proper pillow propping and bed positioning.

Different walkers and uses for, etc. This would be really helpful for a client who had to chose a walker. There are many things to think about and this article gives one a good place to start, and information on choosing.

I found this PDF about MET levels that was created by the Heart Centre at St. Paul's Hospital in Canada. I liked how they explained what MET is.

Sex is a taboo subject for some people, but as future OTA's we need learn how to be able to answer questions about sex. If as a therapist we are uncomfortable discussing sex, we aren't establishing a very good therapeutic use of self if we can not effectively communicate with the client their concerns regarding sex.

This is an article on AOTA website that talks about how important addressing sexuality in the OT field is and the interventions we might take to address sexuality with our clients. Always helpful to have these facts and examples on hand for our future.

Sexuality is a core characteristic and formative factor for human beings. It is a state of mind, representing our feelings about ourselves, what it's like to be male or female, how we relate to people of our own gender and those of the opposite gender, how we establish relationships, and how we express ourselves. This article from AOTA was helpful for me when we were going over sexuality in class. It mentions some specific areas OT can address.

Photo credit: John A. Rogers/University Of Illinois Researchers from Northwestern University and the University of Illinois have developed a discreet, wearable device that provides around-the-clock monitoring of both heart and skin health. The skin-like patch measures a mere five centimeters square and is designed to be worn directly on the skin, for example on a user's wrist much like a band aid.

I thought this was a neat idea, based on the lessons recently on cardiopulmonary health.

At Atlanta's Washington Park Pool, Anne Dunivin slowly and gingerly makes her way into the water. She says, "My girls get me to the pool, twice a week. And I swim for at least half a mile. I swim laps, from that end to this end and then back."

To go along with the studying on the ageing adult we've been doing. This is proof that slowing down is inevitable, but the healthy adult can be active for many years.

Whether coffee makes a person anxious or helps boost their memory may come down to their DNA, according to research that suggests further studies on caffeine should be customised to a person's genetic profile.

Interesting research on how caffeine can improve memory and protect against destruction of brain cells in one segment of the population AND cause yet another segment to have increased anxiety and nervousness.

This article gives a case study of a patient and imformation on different types of meds taken if someone has a cardiopulmonary disease.

This article addresses "health-related issues...appropriate sexual behavior...reproduction and pregnancy" related to sexuality and people with disablities.

This could be a good resourse for clients, it covers some difficult topics related to sex and sexuality: Understanding your anatomy, who you're attracted to, and what gives you pleasure can improve your quality of life and help you take charge of your sexual health.

For most people sexuality is a very intimate area of their personal life which they do not wish to share with other people with the exception, perhaps, of a few very close persons. On the other hand, other peoples' sex life is of great interest to a large part of the population as evidenced by the huge market for sex-oriented films, magazines and similar products.

This article has a great list of websites for patients, care givers, and therapist. Great resource for sex and OT.

In this short video an individual explains her experience with the Orgasmatron. The device is placed on the spinal cord and releases electrical pulses that can be adjusted to increase or decrease stimulation and intensity. The individual describes her experience to be "the most fantastic sex". This device has helped increase the bond between her and her husband. You may or may not have to enter you raider net info to view. An anesthesiologist describes how a set of electrodes stimulate the spinal cord to increase the pleasure of sex for a woman by increasing her level of arousal and capacity for orgasm.

I found this website is very interesting because it is describes sex options for people with different types of disabilities. I never thought about that back pain can be very challenging when it comes to sex. Communication between couples is very important, they can make decisions what sexual activities are the best for them.

This article talks about Innappropriate Patient Sexual Behavior and how to deal with it in a very assertive way. It says to never ignore the problem and to always handle it in a very assertive yet non threatening way. The most important comment that to take away is: "Patient behavior is about the patient and NOT about YOU" - this is good to remember in all patient scenarios. Vol. 23 *Issue 20 * Page 40 Inappropriate Patient Sexual Behavior Part II: Choosing appropriate responses This is the second article in a two-part series on understanding and handling inappropriate patient sexual behavior in the health care setting. Part one appeared in the Sept.

Advances in bionic hands have restored a sense of touch to two patients for more than a year, report US scientists. The men can now delicately pluck the stalks out of cherries. Sensors on the artificial hand are used to send signals directly to the nerves, the study, published in Science Translational Medicine, said.

Speaking of amputations. This is very promising area !

Discusses sexuality in males and females after spinal cord injury, and includes additional resources at the end.

The primary determinant of health for the average person is thought. Not genetics, not exercise or nutrition, but the mind. This has been shown over and over again by the scientific fields of psychoneuroimmunology, psychoneurocardiology, psychoneuroendocrinology, not to mention cancer research and all the various psychosomatic disorders that have been studied.

An anecdotal example of how "stress is the main killer". Interesting perspective.