Occupational Therapy  Department

OT 151 Orientation to Occupational Therapy 1 credit hour
This course provides students with a general overview of occupational therapy history, philosophy, and practice. Students gain a beginning understanding of the value of occupation or purposeful activity in daily life, survey the role of occupational therapy with various populations and in a variety of settings; recognize national and state credentialing requirements, identify occupational therapy association functions at all levels, and recognize AOTA standards, ethics, and policies and their effects on occupational therapy practitioner conduct and patient treatment.

 

OT 310 Applied Pathophysiology I 3 credit hours
This course begins with an introduction to occupational performance (areas, components, and contexts) and an integrated theoretical approach. The course proceeds with an overview of the etiology, clinical course, management, and prognosis of congenital and developmental disabilities, acute and chronic disease processes, and traumatic injuries, and examines the effects of such conditions on functional performance throughout the lifespan as well as explores the effects of wellness on the individual, family, culture, and society. This course has been approved for the one hour nonactivity requirement of Category B3. Health/Fitness of the University Core Curriculum.

 

OT 312 Applied Pathophysiology II 5 credit hours
Providing a focus in the areas of neurology and orthopedics, this course continues the exploration of the etiology, clinical course, management, and prognosis of congential and developmental disabilities, acute and chronic disease processess, traumatic injuries. Emphasis is placed on developing an understanding of the potential effects of such conditions on anatomical structures, physiological processes and the functional performance of individuals throughout the lifespan, while exploring the effects of health promotion and disability prevention on the individual, family, culture, and society. Developing skills in investigating, formulating, and discussing significant clinical and functional factors of such conditions is emphasized.

 
 

OT 315 Applied Movement Analysis 3 credit hours
This course emphasizes the observation, evaluation, description, and documentation of motion and movement patterns, as well as the structure of human anatomy that suggest what constitutes healthy movement patterns. While the primary focus is on functional and aberrant human movement patterns across the lifespan and within various contexts, students also examine the movement patterns of nonhuman objects. Students begin to develop skills in documentation, evaluation, and analysis, and in using diagnostic data in treatment planning to improve functional task performance.

 

OT 320 Professional Communication 3 credit hours
The emphasis of this course is the development of professional level skills in the areas of listening, speaking, reading, and writing. This course includes skills such as interviewing; groupinteraction; documentation to ensure accountability and reimbursement of services; critical reading of research and scholarly papers; public speaking; and participation in meetings. Additionally, students learn to utilize single system research design as a strategy to evaluate clinical change.

 

OT 330 Media and Modalities I 3 credit hours
This course explores various activities and emphasizes detailed activity analysis of occupational performance, development and planning of activities to address delineated goals, grading and adapting of activities for therapeutic intervention, and evaluation of given activities for effectiveness in goal achievement.

 

OT 331 Media Modalities II 3 hours
This course provides a strong orthotics core as well as emphasizes the application of therapeutic intervention for the accomplishment of purposeful acitivities (occupation) including family/caregiver training, environmental adjustments, orthotics, prosthetics, assistive technology, physical agent modalities, and other technology.

 

OT 340 Occupational Performance Components I: Psychosocial Skills 5 credit hours
This course emphasizes the identification of appropriate theoretical frameworks, the selection of purposeful activities that incorporate intervention principles, and the provision of therapeutic interventions to enhance the psychosocial occupational performance component. Psychosocial subcomponents include psychological skills (values, interests, self concept), social skills (role assumption, social conduct, interpersonal skills and self expression), and self management abilities (coping skills, time management, and self control) related across the lifespan and performance contexts. Integrated into this course is a 40 clock hour practicum experience that emphasizes the role of psychosocial components in all occupational therapy settings.

 

OT 341 Occupational Performance Components II: Sensorimotor Skills 6 credit hours
This course emphasizes the identification and exploration of various sensorimotor theoretical frames of references, the selection and specification of purposeful activities that incorporate the concepts of a given frame of reference, and the practice and provision of therapeutic interventions in the sensorimotor occupational performance components. Sensorimotor components include sensory abilities (sensory awareness, sensory processing, and perceptual skills), neuromuscular abilities (reflexes, range of motion, muscle tone, strength, endurance, postural control, postural alignment, soft tissue integrity), and motor abilities (gross motor coordination, crossing the midline, laterality, bilateral integration, motor control, praxis, fine motor coordination/dexterity, visual-motor integration, and oral-motor control), and are related across the lifespan and performance contexts. A 40 clock hour practicum, which emphasizes the role of sensorimotor components in all occupational therapy settings, is integrated into this course.

 

OT 342 Occupational Performance Components III: Cognitive Skills 3 credit hours
This course emphasizes the identification of appropriate theoretical frameworks, the selection and specification of purposeful activities that incorporate intervention principles, and the provision of therapeutic interventions for cognitive occupational performance components. Cognitive subcomponents (level of arousal, orientation, recognition, attention span, initiation of activity, termnation of activity, memory, seqeuncing, categorization, concept formation, spatial operations, problem solving, learning, and generalization) are related across the lifespan and performance contexts.

 

OT 350 Independant Study 1 to 12 credit hours
This elective course may be customized for the special interest of the student. Students may complete this independent study by participating in faculty approved superivised service delivery, research projects under the direction of faculty, or another faculty approved project.

 

OT 380 Professional Evaluation 3 credit hours
This course provides an overview of tests and measurement principles and emphasizes: 1) evaluation of the need for occupational therapy intervention; 2) the selection, administration, and interpretation of standardized and nonstandardized tests and evaluations; 3) interpretation of evaluation in relation to occupational performance (areas, components, and contexts), treatment planning, therapeutic intervention, and age appropriate theoretical frameworks; 4) reevaluation for effect of occupational therapy intervention and need for continued and/or changed treatment; and 5) the appropriate use of the certified occupational therapy assistant in the screening and evaluation process.

 

OT 440 Occupational Performance Areas I: Activities of Daily Living and Play/Leisure ( 4 credit hours)
The emphases of this course are the meaning and dynamics  of purposeful activity to enhance lifespan role functioning, particularly in activities of daily living (grooming, oral hygiene, bathing/showering, toilet hygiene, personal device care, dressing, feeding and eating, medication routine, health maintenance, socialization, functional communication, functional mobility, community mobility, emergency response, and sexual expression) and play or leisure activities (exploration and performance). Also emphasized are the interplay of performance components (sensorimotor psychosocial, and cognitive), the performance area of work and productive activities, and performance contexts (temporal aspects and environment).

 

OT 441 Occupational Performance Areas II: Work and Leisure 4 credit hours
The emphases of this course are the meaning and dynamics of purposeful activity to enhance lifespan role functioning, particularly in work and productive activities (home management, care of others, educational activities, and vocational activities). Also emphasized are the interplay of performance components (sensorimotor psychosocial, and cognitive), the performance area of activities of daily living and play/leisure, and performance contexts (temporal aspects and environment).

OT 450 Independent Study 1 to 12 credit hours
This elective course may be customized for the special interest of the student. Students may complete this independent study by participating in faculty approved supervised service delivery, research projects under the direction of faculty, or another faculty approved project.

 

OT 460 Professional Issues I 3 credit hours
This course provides opportunities to understand the necessity of participating in the promotion of occupational therapy through interaction with other professionals, consumers, third party payers, and the public; to assume individual responsibility for planning professional development in order to maintain a level of practice consistent with accepted standards, and to understand environmental and policy issues which impact the provision of occupational therapy services. The course includes 40 clock hours of Advanced Role Practicum experience in which students are paired with administrators, researchers, academics, or master clinicians.

 

OT 461 Professional Issues II 2 credit hours
This accelerated course, offered in the months of April and May after two professional fieldwork internships, provides a continuation of professional issue examination with a focus on the development of leadership abilities. The course emphasizes integration and synthesis of professional coursework with internship experiences. To simulate the timing necessary to integrate professional development into the work environment, certain assignments for this class are due during February, and March even though students are completing Level II internship experiences during that time.

 

OT 470 Occupational Therapy Management 3 credit hours
Principles of management such as planning, organizing, staffing, coordinating/directing, controlling, budgeting, marketing, and strategic planning are explored on a personal and professional level and applied to the delivery of occupational therapy services in a variety of service models including medical, community, and educational systems. There is an emphasis on the development of supervisory skills for occupational therapy students, certified occupational therapy assistants, and other personnel.

 

OT 480 Occupational Therapy Research 3 credit hours
This course is designed to provide the student opportunities to synthesize the requisite foundation of liberal arts and sciences (including biology, psychology, sociology, English, communications, and ethics) with the professional sequence of occupational therapy coursework. Following an introduction that covers the philosophical underpinnings of inquiry, the importance of research, the two traditions of research including process stages and essential components, basic versus applied research, and rigor in research, students utilize discovery learning in six areas of inquiry: single system design research (with quantitative analysis), qualitative research, action research, focus group research, advanced quantitative research, and outcome evaluation. Students enter this course having conducted and presented two research studies (of which at least one utilized a single system design) at the Occupational Therapy Program’s end-of-the-semester conferences and completed one survey methods project in the past as well as having studies both descriptive statistics and nonparametric inferential statistics in precious occupational therapy courses. This course has been approved for Category D: Synthesis of the University Core Curriculum.

 

OT 497: Professional Fielwork A and OT 498: Professional Fielwork B 4 credit hours
In each of these Level II fieldwork experiences of at least 12 weeks full-time, students synthesize knowledge gained throughout their educational experiences including liberal arts courses (University Core Curriculum) as well as the professional sequence of  occupational therapy coursework by delivering occupational therapy services to persons having various levels of occupational performance. For service delivery, students use clinical reasoning, self reflection, and creativity in their utilization of various occupational therapy theoretical approaches throughout the occupational therapy process. By the end of this internship, the student must function as an entry-level occupational therapist. Fieldwork A must vary from Fieldwork B to reflect a difference in (a) ages across the lifespan of persons requiring occupational therapy services, (b) the setting with regard to chronicity (long term versus short term), and (c) facility type (institutional versus community based).

 

OT 499 Professional Fieldwork C 2 to 4 credit hours
This elective Level II fieldwork placement is designed for the student who wishes an opportunity to gain experience of 6 - 12 weeks (full-time) in duration in a specialized area of practice. Fieldwork C must vary from Fieldworks A and B.