Occupational Therapy Assistant The Occupational Therapy Assistant program is housed in the Health Sciences Division and terminates in an AAS degree (75 credit hours). Program Description: Under the direction of an Occupational Therapist, the Occupational Therapy Assistant aids in evaluating patients and in developing a plan of selected tasks to restore, influence, or enhance performance of individuals whose abilities to cope with daily-living activities are impaired or threatened by developmental deficits, the aging process, physical injury or illness, learning disabilities, or psychological or social disabilities. Graduates are employed in general hospitals, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes, home healthcare agencies, private practices, and other specialized healthcare settings. The program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education. Graduates may sit for the licensure exam administered by National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy. Mission: To prepare graduates of the Occupational Therapy Assistant program for entry-level employment in the Occupational Therapy field. To achieve this mission, the Occupational Therapy Assistant faculty and staff have identified the following outcomes as measures of program effectiveness: 1. Student Learning and Program Outcomes SLO (1): The student will demonstrate knowledge of the fundamentals of Occupational Therapy, including roles of practitioners, ethical considerations, and terminology (LO 2).
2. Assessment Criteria and Schedule 90% of students will achieve a passing score (defined as “Meets Expectations” or better) on the first attempt on a case study assignment addressing the OTA practice framework, which outlines the fundamentals of OTA practice, as measured against departmental rubric (each
3. Assessment Results
4. Analysis and Use of Results
100% of students achieved a passing score on first attempt. Weaknesses noted by faculty in students’ ability to apply concepts of performance pattern domains.
As a result of analysis, faculty have allocated additional time throughout the curriculum to the fundamentals of practice, particularly in the OTA 200 course revision. A review of these concepts has been provided in a case study undertaken Summer Semester 2013.