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This article focused on the importance of having your heart, mind, and soul behind you and your profession in order to present professionalism within the occupational therapy field. The heart of professionalism in occupational therapy, focuses on doing Good Work and/or ensuring that what we are doing is right for us as well as improving another's life. The mind of professionalism in occupational therapy, this idea is centered around working to broaden the scope of knowledge within occupational therapy as well as providing EVP to your clients because they deserve more than the routine BUE exercises. Lastly, the soul of professionalism within occupational therapy, this involves collaborating with other individuals within the profession, critically evaluating, and brainstorming to ensure that the highest standard of practice is being used within the clinics. These three components are interwoven. Therefore, if one piece, the heart, mind, or soul is missing then the level of professionalism you portray decreases.

As we engage our hearts to do Good Work, strive to nourish our minds, and to cultivate the authenticity of our souls we can help make the field of occupational therapy stand out and be a pillar of professionalism. Wendy Wood's article is inspiring and is a good read to give you a little boost.

The author's purpose of this article was to promote professionalism as heart, mind, and soul at all level so that all we do in the name of occupational therapy not only remains right for ourselves and good for the world, but also grows more so over time. He described professionalism as especially important for the well-being of individuals or of society at large, having a value so special that money cannot serve as its sole measure: it is also simply good work. The author was captured by the magic of occupational therapy as a counselor at a summer camp for autistic children, which was a truly inspiring story about how he fell in love with the profession. He emphasized how personal professionalism is; so personal, in fact, that he uses the metaphors of heart, mind, and soul to depict its most vital elements. Any field claiming professional stature must be just as dedicated to cultivating its mind as it is to nourishing its heart, as the two are wonderfully symbiotic. I loved this article, and it truly depicted the meaning of and what it means to be an occupational therapist at a personal level.

This article outlines five steps to achieve professionalism in order to demonstrate that you have respect for your employer, your co-workers, as well as yourself. Oftentimes, individuals can demonstrate professionalism during the interviewing process or when meeting with individuals in higher management. However, professionalism should be practiced on a daily basis. There are various ways to demonstrate professionalism within the workplace, including but not limited to, dressing appropriately, respecting others, and actively engaging in learning experiences. The first step to demonstrating professionalism includes looking the part. First impressions are lasting impressions, and an individual's attire sends a message to others concerning how serious they are about their work. Secondly, a professional should always use proper grammar, regardless of the type of communication. In addition, individuals should seek additional tasks and challenges as a means to show responsibility as well as a desire to succeed and grow within their company. Professionals should show respect toward others in all interactions regardless of whether it is a consumer, co-worker, or upper management. Lastly, part of demonstrating professionalism includes admitting any mistakes or mishaps. A willingness to admit one's mistakes takes courage; however, these individuals are often more cautious employees.

This website talks about professionalism and 5 steps to achieve professionalism. These steps are as follows: look the part, grammar is essential, tasks and challenges should be approached head on, show respect towards others, and accepting accountability for mishaps or mistakes. I believe these are good tips to achieve professionalism.

This resource shares 5 simple ways to increase professionalism. These ways include dressing appropriately and having proper hygiene. WHO and the CDC have different guidelines for hygiene so it is important to know and understand the appearance policies for the facility you are interviewing/working for. The use of proper grammar and communication skills in all forms of communication (written or verbal) is essential. It is also important to face challenges head on and to view challenging circumstances as learning opportunities. Always showing respect for others even in times of disagreement will show that you can handle yourself in a professional manner. The final suggestion was to always accept responsibility for mistakes.

Guidelines to the Occupational Therapy Code of Ethics This is a really handy resource that provides a quick glance at the different elements of the Occupational Therapy Code of Ethics. It lists ten sections of professional behaviors under the code of ethics and each have a subset of behaviors which are appropriate under that section. The first professional behavior listed is honesty. "Professionals must be honest with themselves, must be honest with all whom they come in contact with, and must know their strengths and limitations" (AOTA, 2005). The second behavior listed is communication. "Communication is important in all aspects of occupational therapy. Individuals must be conscientious and truthful in all facets of written, verbal, and electronic communication" (AOTA, 2005). The third area of professional behavior is ensuring the common good. "Occupational therapy personnel are expected to increase awareness of the profession's social responsibilities to help ensure the common good" (AOTA, 2005). The fourth professional behavior is competence. "Occupational therapy personnel are expected to work within their areas of competence and to pursue opportunities to update, increase, and expand their competence" (AOTA, 2005). The fifth area of professional behavior is confidential and protected information. "Information that is confidential must remain confidential. This information cannot be shared verbally, electronically, or in writing without appropriate consent. Information must be shared on a need-to-know basis only with those having primary responsibilities for decision making" (AOTA, 2005). The sixth professional behavior area is conflict of interest. "Avoidance of real or perceived conflict of interest is imperative to maintaining the integrity of interactions" (AOTA, 2005). The seventh professional behavior area is impaired practitioner. "Occupational therapy personnel who cannot competently perform their duties after reasonable accommodati

This PDF document defines professionalism competency as an individual's ability to align both personal and organizational conduct with ethical and professional standards in order to assume responsibility to the patient and community through providing professional level services. This column, developed by the Healthcare Leadership Alliance, outlines four key areas in order to develop competency in professionalism. The first step in achieving competency includes understanding professional roles and norms. This includes understanding both the formal and informal expectations of conduct within the field. For occupational therapists, this would include interacting with other occupational therapy practitioners as well as being actively involved in state and national occupational therapy organizations, such as AOTA and staying up to date with research and trends within the field. Secondly, an individual must be able to establish and maintain working relationships with others. Thirdly, in order to demonstrate professionalism competency an individual must be able to manage time, energy, stress, uphold ethical/professional standards, and develop a sense of personal responsibility and accountability for their work. Lastly, an individual must be able to give back to others and contribute to others growth, whether through mentorships or simply coaching others to reach their potential. Becoming competent in professionalism can be time consuming and require a great deal of dedication; however, as healthcare professionals we should always strive to achieve professionalism.

This brief article provides various definitions of professionalism and explains why professionalism is important. The author explains that professionalism is multifaceted. Professionalism can be defined as upholding professional code of ethics, acknowledging patient rights, as well as an awareness of conduct. Professionalism can be verbal or nonverbal, as well as physical or nonphysical. The saying first impressions are lasting impressions explain why professionalism is so important. As healthcare professionals it is very important to always present our best selves. Thus, as the author explains the most important thing is to remember that professionalism is not an option. There should never be a question concerning whether an individual should act in a professional manner.

This article discusses the importance of utilizing proper bedside manner as a healthcare professional. As healthcare professionals, we are constantly in close contact with our patients, colleagues, and supervisors. In order to demonstrate professionalism we must not only possess good manners but we must establish mutual respect within our daily interactions while on the job whether the interaction be among patients, their families, co-workers, or supervisors. This article highlights that it is our responsibility to set the tone when interacting with patients and their families. As healthcare professionals, we are constantly being assessed by others through our body language, appearance, and the way in which we communicate. Thus, in order to gain our patient's trust and respect we must make them comfortable and present ourselves in a professional manner. Part of demonstrating professionalism includes being kind and empathetic, truly hearing our patient's needs and encouraging them to express any concerns that they may have during the course of their treatment. This article briefly outlines a protocol developed by the Sullivan Luallin Group to help healthcare personnel demonstrate a higher level of professionalism when interacting with patients. The C.L.E.A.R. protocol stands for connect, listen, explain, ask, and re-connect, and serves to provide professionals with guidance concerning proper ways to provide services to patients. The conclusion of the article outlines specific techniques to utilize in order to address each aspect of the C.L.E.A.R. protocol in order to render a higher level of professionalism within the field of occupational therapy.

These authors created a schematic representation of professionalism through review of the literature and qualitative analysis of information obtained from discussion groups focused on professionalism. Professionalism was found to be a diverse and multi-faceted concept, as illustrated by the final schematic diagram, with professional parameters, professional behaviors, and professional responsibilities as the three main emerging themes in professionalism.

This article explores a schematic representation of professionalism developed through a review of the literature and qualitative analysis of information obtained from discussion groups focussed on professionalism. In this paper, the schematic representation of professionalism is presented as well as information about two supported self-study courses entitled, Fostering Professional Development and Becoming a Professional. A professional portfolio guide for the student occupational therapist is also described. Future implications and directions for fostering professionalism is discussed.

This article is a study that investigated occupational therapy students' perspective on professionalism. Themes about professionalism emerged and were discussed in the study that I thought might be interesting to read to see how they correlate with each of our thoughts about professionalism.

Understanding a student's view on professionalism, may help fieldwork educators to identify teaching and research opportunities, in order to, help students succeed and better prepare them for entry level positions after graduation.

This article outlines five key areas that separate a professional from an employee. According to the author, exemplifying professionalism means talking the talk and walking the walk, with the attitude and behavior of possessing the appropriate skill, confidence and integrity needed within your career. In order to demonstrate professionalism within the workplace one must realize that character counts; it is important to uphold ethical standards even when no one is watching. Secondly, an individual must have a positive and enthusiastic attitude within the workplace. A professional will also always strive to achieve more, to achieve excellence. In addition, professionals demonstrate competency within their field, they are the best at what they do. Lastly, a professional always upholds the code of conduct outlined by his profession everywhere he goes.

This article explores professionalism as an ideal that encompasses widely held expectations of, and and objective standards for evaluating,any field that calls itself a profession. The author seeks to promote professionalism as heart, mind, and soul at all levels so that all practitioners do in the name of occupational therapy will remain right for themselves and good for the world.

This article discusses professionalism in OT practice and what it means. Professionalism was broken down into three parts: the heart, mind, and soul. The main point the author stressed is that professionalism is personal and is the responsibility of each individual. The heart was described as the pleasure and pride taken in our work as OTs. The mind is the specialized body of knowledge that makes OT unique. The soul is the authentic and genuine connections with both patients and colleagues. Each of these can be disrupted but it is the individual's responsibility to try and create a solution to further promote the professionalism of OT.

The purpose of this study was to explore occupational therapy faculty and students' perspectives of the meaning of professionalism. This qualitative study used convenience sampling to recruit eight second-year occupational therapy master's students and five occupational therapy faculty members to participate in two separate focus groups. Data analysis yielded the following student focus group themes: uncertainty about professional expectations; searching for answers through concrete concepts; and the context-specific nature of professionalism. Faculty focus group themes were professional responsibility; professional awareness. The findings of this study suggest that professionalism is a dynamic, context-specific concept requiring experience, awareness, and reasoning to arrive at an in depth understanding.

This paper strives for a greater understanding of how professionalism is currently conceptualised within Western occupational therapy literature. The article explains how an understanding of professionalism is commonly assumed rather than clearly explained. Thus, explicit description and examination of this complex concept is often over- looked. It should be noted that the concept of professionalism is solely being examined through a Western cultural lens.