The field of occupational therapy is currently lacking skilled therapists to fill potential positions. There are not enough therapists to serve the public, yet the demand for occupational therapy services is on the rise. Occupational therapist Sharon Gutman shares a few of the causes she has experienced throughout her career: “As treatment of people with mental illness transitioned from large inpatient institutions to the community, occupational therapy positions, like many other healthcare positions, were lost” (Gutman 235). This explains why some jobs were lost. Patients are being transferred because of several reasons such as insurance coverage, government policies, or family demand. This causes more occupational therapy positions to be available in bigger cities; however, there are not enough therapists to fill those needs because some occupational therapists moved to other venues.
Many occupational therapists who lost employment in mental health practice transitioned to school based practice. In the next four decades, the …show more content…
In 2011, Gutman and others interviewed therapists and found surprising results. Even others in the medical field and in government can be uninformed: “Healthcare colleagues and legislators did not understand the relevancy of occupational therapy services, nor did they perceive how such services could be a key element in the community” (Gutman 236). Without the support and understanding of what an occupational therapist does, it is difficult for young people to pursue this career. If there were more knowledge about this field, the shortage of therapists would possibly not be as big an issue as it is now. This issue snowballs into another one; there is a surplus of job openings, but not enough therapists to fill those openings and therefore patients are not
Many occupational therapists who lost employment in mental health practice transitioned to school based practice. In the next four decades, the …show more content…
In 2011, Gutman and others interviewed therapists and found surprising results. Even others in the medical field and in government can be uninformed: “Healthcare colleagues and legislators did not understand the relevancy of occupational therapy services, nor did they perceive how such services could be a key element in the community” (Gutman 236). Without the support and understanding of what an occupational therapist does, it is difficult for young people to pursue this career. If there were more knowledge about this field, the shortage of therapists would possibly not be as big an issue as it is now. This issue snowballs into another one; there is a surplus of job openings, but not enough therapists to fill those openings and therefore patients are not