Opinion: Times of Change
Monday August 31, 2009
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As the healthcare debate rages on, let’s take a look back at the forces that brought occupational therapy into being as a medical profession. By understanding the history of our profession, we may gain a better grasp of our place in the American healthcare system.
There is an excellent book written by Virginia Quiroga, PhD, titled, “Occupational Therapy: The First 30 Years, 1900 to 1930.” In her book, Quiroga teaches us that World War I forced the new profession of occupational therapy to clarify its role in the medical domain and standardize training and practice. In addition to clarifying its public image, those in practice also established clinics, workshops, and training schools nationwide.
Because of the overwhelming number of wartime injuries, “reconstruction aides” (an umbrella term for physical therapists and occupational therapists) were recruited by the surgeon general. Between 1917 and 1920, nearly 148,000 wounded men were placed in hospitals upon their return to the states. The success of the reconstruction aides, largely made up of women trying to “do their bit” to help with the war effort, was a great accomplishment.
Today, we continue to provide OT services to soldiers and veterans and many other patients and clients so they may gain independence and maintain a sense of positive self worth. We have come a long way from reconstruction aides, but our roots and values remain the same. Without occupation, there is no quality of life.
The American Occupational Therapy Association recently endorsed Boston University’s Activity Measure for Post Acute Care outcomes measurement tool. This tool will help meet one of the goals of the AOTA’s Centennial Vision by promoting understanding and use of occupational therapy, according to the organization.
AOTA hopes to develop a database of occupational therapy outcomes to identify and promote the profession’s accomplishments. This project, conceived three years ago, is putting AOTA and the profession in a position to answer major policy and reimbursement questions being considered in the healthcare reform debate. AOTA aims to have a set of outcomes data by 2011.
Occupational therapists and assistants lead the way for independence in activities of daily living. Collectively, we prevent work injuries through ergonomics assessment and training. We provide home and community-based rehabilitation and fall-prevention programs. We are pediatric sensory integration specialists for medical and school-based therapy programs. We provide much needed hospital-based rehabilitation services, and we are specialists in upper extremity rehabilitation and prevention programs.
Let’s meet the challenge of healthcare reform together!
To comment, e-mail oteditor@gannetthg.com.
