https://www.aota.org/Education-Careers/Advance-Career/OT-Job-Link.aspx

This is a link to OT joblink. Ot joblink does not just list OT jobs in an easy to use database but also has resources listing average salaries, the job outlook for OTs, sample resumes, mock interview questions, job search tips, OT licensure information, salary negotiation tips, Job Settings, career success after landing a job. I will certainly be using this to help me transition from being a student to taking the test to being a practitioner.

https://www.aota.org/Conference-Events/Student-conclave.aspx

The National Student Conclave is a way to network with other students, learn about the NBCOT exam and meet with the top experts of the field. Nov 3-4 in Birmingham Alabama. It is meant to increase your understanding of the field and what you can bring based upon the leadership examples of the experts.

https://www.aota.org/~/media/Corporate/Files/ConferenceDocs/Conclave/Student-Conclave-Brochure-2017.pdf

https://www.aota.org/Conference-Events/annual-conference.aspx

Here is the page for the 2018 AOTA annual conference, you can gather information here, sign up and see where it is at. This is a way to network with other therapists, find out the latest development in the field and look for jobs.

https://www.aota.org/Education-Careers/Advance-Career/fellowship.aspx

In AOTA's own words the "Fellowship Programs offer opportunities for didactic learning, mentored practice, and scholarship for occupational therapists that have graduated and completed the requirements for licensure." It is similar to the Emerging Leaders Program I referenced earlier but instead is focused on an area of PRACTICE instead of leadership skills. You can sign up here and I would encourage others to do so when they start working. It coud help you grow your skills and not feel like you are just throwing things at the wall and instead are really helping your client.

https://www.aota.org/Education-Careers/Advance-Career/Board-Specialty-Certifications.aspx

Here is a list of Board and Specialty Certifications. The benefits of applying for one are numerous as they make your resume stand out and can push you to continue developing yourself professionally when you start to feel like you are in a rut in growing your therapy skills. These are accredited and recognized in all areas of practice. You can see what you need to apply and apply here. There are 9 certifications :
0 Gerontology (BCG)
o Driving and Community Mobility (SCDCM or SCDCM-A)
o Mental Health (BCMH)
o Environmental Modification (SCEM or SCEM-A)
o Pediatrics (BCP)
o Feeding, Eating, and Swallowing (SCFES or SCFES-A)
o Physical Rehabilitation (BCPR)
o Low Vision (SCLV or SCLV-A)
o School Systems (SCSS or SCSS-A)

https://www.aota.org/Education-Careers/Advance-Career/ELDP.aspx

This is another AOTA professionalism tool entitled Emerging Leaders Development Program. It is meant to increase the skills and leadership of OT students and practitioners with less than 5 years of experience to volunteer and gain new experiences. It is a part of achieving AOTA's vision for 2025. The chosen participant engages in a 2 day mentorship meeting at AOTA headquarters and over the year the mentor guides the practitioner in activities meant to increase the practitioner's leadership skills. The time to apply is now closed, however the outline and what activities they participate in can still be an example for us to develop our skills and to seek a mentor out in the field now and when we are licensed. Keep an eye out to see the implementation of the program and see how you can implement it into your development.

https://www.aota.org/Education-Careers/Advance-Career/PDT.aspx

This is an interactive module AOTA provides (if one is a member) to assist practitioners in furthering their professional development by (in their own words) "facilitating the process of assessing individual learning needs and interests, creating a professional development plan, and documenting professional development activities." This helps one to track their continuing education they have completed/will complete and helps a therapist outline their strengths and abilities they can provide to their workplace for job searches.

https://www.aota.org/Education-Careers/Fieldwork/Supervisor/HIPAA.aspx

These are the HIPAA guidelines for fieldwork students. While this will only be applicable in the future for us if we mentor students, it is quite applicable now for what professional behaviors we should be exhibiting that are required for us by HIPAA to protect patient information. We MUST display these behaviors in order to pass.

https://prezi.com/-vyj7pbw4gbk/clinical-reasoning-types/

This prezi presentation reviews the different types of clinical reasoning we can use as we practice in the clinic. They are conditional (otherwise known as narrative reasoning), Procedural and Ethical. Each of the different types presented have a case study to go along with them. These are helpful to frame the way we think about the way we figure out how to approach our client over just figuring out how to "fix" the disease process.

http://www.otseeker.com/resources/SearchingForEvidence.aspx

 This is another great resource that doesn't just give us the what is evidence based and why it is important but gives us a specific process with specific keywords to use in our search. It gives us these two questions to guide us: What type of research evidence to look for? How to find it? It gives a list of database to use related specifically to OT and then gives general medical databases if the information cannot be found in the former.

http://www.otseeker.com/Info/FullText.aspx

 What I like about this resource is that it is very practical in informing the OT practitioner as to where they can find free research articles associated with occupational therapy. So many of the resources about evidence based practice are why it is important and how we are using it but they do not help us to actually do it. This is a resource that can show us how we can access articles to help us perform the action of evidence based practice. It shows how we can use hospital/student networks if we are affiliated to a hospital or school, certain search engines, keywords to use to increase the chance of the articles being free with an archive of all of the journal relevant to OT.

 Bennett, S., & Bennett, J. W. (2000). The process of evidence-based practice in occupational therapy: Informing clinical decisions. Australian Occupational Therapy Journal, 47(4), 171-180. doi:10.1046/j.1440-1630.2000.00237.x

 This article talks about the increasing pressure on occupational therapy as a field to present rigorous research to back up clinical practice and the need to educate therapists on the process of evidence based practice and not just academics. It instructs the reader on how to ask the right evidence question, how to search for evidence, Critical appraisal, validity, and clinical importance/application. This is a useful tool for us to use as a guide in evaluating our process of using research to make evidence based clinical decisions.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5H8w68sr0u8

 This video goes over the levels of evidence in research which obviously does not just cover occupational therapy research but all types. However, it is very relevant for us due to the fact that we want to find articles and use research that has the highest level of evidence instead of just use any article to justify why we are practicing and using the interventions that we are. The top are Meta analyses, randomized controlled double blind studies, cohort, case control, case series, case reports, ideas/editorials/opinions, animal research, in vitro research

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OywuIkA1q6c

 This video goes over the evidence for sensory integration. Sensory integration is often used and often questioned if it is based upon good enough research. This video goes into depth and looks at what supports the theory and why it is important and relevant to the clinic and occupational therapy practice. It goes over the assessments and the evidence of the efficacy of the assessments, the presentation of dysfunction in the clinic, the theories behind sensory integration, demographics of who receives the treatment, what type of settings it is used in, criticism and so on.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQHB7wb0Dn8

This is an autogenic training video created specifically for occupational therapists. Autogenic techniques involve repeating a set of visualizations to help the client relax with a treatment of typically 15 minutes. This video is used to help OTs learn the visualization technique, a technique that is oft talked about in class and in academic settings but which has difficulty finding its way into the clinic due to lack of training and feeling that it is cumbersome. Educating yourself on what it is and how to perform it may help it become a more oft used practice.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FU36cj2iv6I

This video is a great resource in relaxation techniques that can be specifically used for occupational therapy due to displaying visual examples of how to do each technique. They are displayed and each step of performing the techniques are explained. The techniques in the video are Abdominal Breathing, Diaphragmatic Breathing, Spinal Twist, Side Stretch, Seated Piriformis & Hamstring Stretch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFsdzPpMSv0

This video details stress management techniques that occupational therapists can use and educate their clients on. Stress is a common negative experience for our clients and we need to find ways to help them cope with the mental aspect of their disability or trauma. They cover mindfulness, exercise, diaphragmatic breathing, taking rest breaks, Visualization and Guided Imagery, Muscle Relaxation, Organization, Fidget Toys, Music and Sleep.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNEW1SASghI

This video describes the role of occupational therapy in mental health and meeting the mental (aka psychosocial) needs of the clients. It shows how therapists who are focusing on mental health do not need to just work in psychiatry but can use their mental health training in ALL settings including ones we don't normally associate them with such as acute care and outpatient settings. This video goes into how we bring our unique perspective due to our focus on habituation, recovery-orientation and a whole other host of specific skills that we bring to mental health.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_PuOWkkVIQ

This video discusses the use of leisure activities (and has a really thorough explanation of leisure which can help solve the what is leisure vs play debate) to meet the psychosocial needs of the client. It talks about how it helps meet the physical and mental needs of the client, lowers the stress, improves the quality of life and increases positivity. It gives strategies of how to locate the leisure activities of the client and incorporate them into our daily interventions. They even give an example you can use as the Chinese staircase string activity.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myuvaMEmU_w

This is a placement supervisor being interviewed about what positive benefits students bring to their fieldwork placement. I thought everyone here would enjoy it to know that you have a positive impact even though you may feel like you are bumbling around. You bring a fresh face, new ideas and updated theories. This also can serve as a reminder that you can contribute your skills NOW. You don't have to wait until you are graduated. This helps us if in the future we want to supervise students what skills we could learn from students and what skills to bring out of students.