Introduction
This chapter presents the results from the survey created to examine the areas of growth of OT within the school-based setting. The results included in this chapter look at the question “What are the biggest challenges facing occupational therapy in the school system?” We will also look at the following survey questions: “Which skills are underutilized in the school system by OT? Do you feel the role of occupational therapy is understood by your co-workers (teachers, principals, other therapists)? Why or why not? Are you satisfied with your job? Why or Why not? “
Survey
There were a total of 72 respondents that completed the survey through survey monkey. 91.55% of the study was completed by Occupational …show more content…
Respondents mentioned that leadership and co-workers do not understand the scope of OT, and see therapists as handwriting teachers. Another top response mentioned is the education of the leaders/co-worker support and education (14) to ensure the proper use and implementation of school-based OT. Also mentioned frequently is the lack of time/time management (13) amongst OT practitioners as well as inadequate funding/equipment (13), space (9)with a large caseload …show more content…
Why or why not? 44.44% of the respondents feel like their co-workers do not understand the role of occupational therapy in the school-based setting. Respondents mentioned that they are seen as fine motor therapists or glorified writing teachers. 36.11% of respondents felt like their co-workers somewhat understand the role of OT in the school-based setting. The respondents stated that the physical therapists, speech language pathologists and some teachers understood the role of OT. They also mentioned that most principals and leaders within the school district do not understand the role of OT. Only 18.05% felt like their co-workers understood the role of OT in the school-based setting (1.4% left no response to the question).
Subquestion 4
The fourth question asked: Are you satisfied with your job? Why or Why not? 59 out of 72 respondents are somewhat to completely satisfied with their job as an OT practitioner in the school-based setting. OT practitioners mentioned the love of children and role of OT as the main reasons for their enjoyment of the profession within the school-based setting. The 12 respondents who are not satisfied with their job stated that poor leadership, lack of appreciation and large caseload are the main reasons for their