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Synchronous vs. asynchronous content delivery in context of COVID-19
Time is but the stream I go a-fishing in. I drink at it; but while I drink I see the sandy bottom and detect how shallow it is. Its thin current slides away, but eternity remains. I would drink deeper; fish in the sky, whose bottom is pebbly with stars. (Thoreau).Many educators are considering ways to deliver their courses in this unprecedented context of students being in their homes, away from the normal routines and location of the Academy.  We no longer have control of the schedule - the students are not a captive audience in front of us at the times that we normally expect.What does this mean for our new context ...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - March 17, 2020 Category: Occupational Health Tags: OT Education Source Type: blogs

On so-called'Civility Pledges' and the abolition of free thought and free speech
I have blogged previously about the glaring problem of lack of tolerance for viewpoint diversity in occupational therapy, and unsuccessful attempts to address the concern. See here for more details. It is not a new problem in occupational therapy, and now the problem is being demonstrated again.An important agenda item has been added to the Spring Representative Assembly meeting of the American Occupational Therapy Association - to explore the creation of a ' Civility Pledge ' as follows:On its surface, most people will agree that it is important to be kind and respectful when interacting with others.  Howev...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - February 27, 2020 Category: Occupational Health Tags: OT Education OT practice philosophy policy Source Type: blogs

The 2020 motion to Update Policy E.6 Entry-Level Education of Occupational Therapists and Occupational Therapy Assistants
Please see the following for background information:AOTA ' s claim to authority over entry level degree requirementsA Motion to Update Policy E.6 Entry-Level Education of Occupational Therapists and Occupational Therapy AssistantsAn analysis of how small changes can potentially lead to unintended consequences in a motion+++A new motion has been submitted to AOTA to update Policy E.6 regarding entry level education of occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants.  The originator of this motion believes that this update is necessary because in fact the intent of the first motion was changed through w...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - January 30, 2020 Category: Occupational Health Tags: OT Education OT practice policy Source Type: blogs

Online data sources for narrative analysis: An innovative use of technology in a graduate project
Presented at The Quality Report Annual Conference, Ft. Lauderdale,  FL, 1/15/20Thanks for stopping by to look at our slides!Conference slides! (Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog)
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - January 18, 2020 Category: Occupational Health Tags: OT Education Source Type: blogs

The OTD Mandate and The Great Pumpkin
It is near Halloween, so a themed entry seems appropriate.We have another motion in front of the AOTA Representative Assembly to mandate an entry level doctoral degree - even though a decision point was reached just six months ago on this same issue.  At that time, the decision was to support dual entry at both the master ' s and doctoral level.That did not satisfy a Small Group of individuals, and so we are at the debate again.People frequently ask me ' why ' the profession is going through this again.  That is where the Halloween story comes in.Each year, despite overwhelming evidence against his belief system,...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - October 30, 2019 Category: Occupational Health Tags: OT Education Source Type: blogs

The need for occupational therapy educational standards reform: Addressing the real problem behind the push for a doctoral mandate
As a profession, occupational therapists have been spending time talking about opposing the motion to mandate the doctorate – but we need to spend time trying to solve the problem that is bringing this issue to the table.I believe that we have a specific problem (too many credits in masters programs) and some of our colleagues are trying to justify the escalated degree solution by conflating the real problem with a lot of side issues that may not be accurate (e.g. doctorates will give us a seat at the table, doctorates will make us more respected, doctorates will maintain parity with other professions, doctorates will ma...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - October 27, 2019 Category: Occupational Health Tags: OT Education OT practice Source Type: blogs

Open letter to the Representative Assembly of the American Occupational Therapy Association
Dear Representative Assembly Members, I am a program director of an occupational therapy program. I am shocked and concerned that the AOTA ' s Representative Assembly has accepted a new motion to re-litigate the entry level doctoral issue after it was just voted on and decided six months ago. In any democratic process, issues should never be considered ' closed. ' However, we also need to have some procedural safeguards to ensure that there is not an abuse of processes in order to effect a Small Group ' s will. The Representative Assembly has such a process. In the document ' Rubric for RA Motions ' it clearly states:" T...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - October 9, 2019 Category: Occupational Health Tags: OT Education Source Type: blogs

Can you have too many books?
On the theme of having ' too many ' of something...Can you have too many books?My choice to engage in private practice complicated my life plan to have dedicated spaces for work and play.  Work became a lifestyle, and the Internet just made the whole problem that much more complicated - accessing email and any other point of information at any time.  I am not sure why I didn ' t consider this back in 1981 when I first logged onto CompuServe.  I might have planned all this differently, and maybe made different life choices about information access.Anyway, I think that I have too many work-oriented books. ...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - August 12, 2019 Category: Occupational Health Tags: Too much information Source Type: blogs

There are too many occupational therapy educational programs in New York State
There is an alarming increase in the number of accepted applicant and developing occupational therapy programs in New York State. The current entity responsible for the accreditation of these programs is the Accrediting Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE), a function of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA).According to data provided by AOTA and ACOTE, there are 22 accredited occupational therapy masters-level degree programs in NY State and 12 accredited associates-level occupational therapy assistant degree programs.There are two additional developing masters-level degree programs, ten appli...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - July 11, 2019 Category: Occupational Health Tags: OT Education OT practice policy Source Type: blogs

The Barton Project: CAOT 2019 Conference slides
Conference slides!Hi and thank you for stopping here to look at the slides for my presentation at the 2019 CAOT conference!I will update this page with more information SOON! (Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog)
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - May 31, 2019 Category: Occupational Health Tags: Barton history Source Type: blogs

Relying on student subservience in the degree escalation competition game.
I was wondering today how many students were paying attention to the early presidential primary activities.  During Joe Biden ' s kickoff presidential rally in Pittsburgh yesterday he discussed the problems with over-credentialing and how it can serve to restrict competition in the marketplace.Heframed his basic presentation in context of lower wage earners and Union jobs, but does his argument apply to health care other middle income licensed occupations?" They do the same thing with occupational licenses. Why should someone who braids hair have to get 600 hours of training? It makes no sense. It ' s designed to keep...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - April 30, 2019 Category: Occupational Health Tags: OT Education policy Source Type: blogs

Occupational therapy: The mouse that roared about degree escalation and credential inflation
It is easy for occupational therapy practitioners who have been embroiled in the intraprofessional debate about entry level credentials to lose sight of a larger perspective.  Sometimes the closer you are to a concern, the more challenging it is to understand the more broad ramifications of something that happened.The grass roots effort that pushed against a mandated escalation of the entry level degrees in the occupational therapy profession made a very broad social and cultural statement.  It was a historic example of a professional group that argued against some of its own leadership in an effort that ultimate...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - April 12, 2019 Category: Occupational Health Tags: OT Education OT practice policy Source Type: blogs

An analysis of how small changes can potentially lead to unintended consequences in a motion
An analysis of the recent motion to update policy E.6 Entry Level Education is offered for consideration.Please refer to the following for background information:A Motion to Update Policy E.6 Entry-Level Education of Occupational Therapists and Occupational Therapy Assistantsand alsoAOTA ' s claim to authority over entry level degree requirementsROADMAP FOR UNDERSTANDING THE ISSUE:To understand the problems with the wording changes you need to read and understand the first policy as it is written in the policy manual.  Then you have to read and understand the motion that was submitted to update.  Then you have to...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - April 8, 2019 Category: Occupational Health Tags: policy Source Type: blogs

What will happen to the Wilma West Library and archives of the occupational therapy profession?
During the last year, minutes from the Board meetings of the American Occupational Therapy Association indicate that there has been discussion on two matters that have an important impact on the Wilma West Library, home of the collected resources that catalog the history of occupational therapy.Around last year, discussion apparently started getting more specific related to sale of AOTA ' s current building.  In May 2018 the board authorized the (re)allocation of funds necessary to pay off the mortgage on the building and exploration of new sites for the organization ' s operations.  It is unclear if a new locati...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - March 26, 2019 Category: Occupational Health Tags: history Source Type: blogs

Degree escalation and doctoral education are sinking the occupational therapy profession
Occupational therapy started on a simple premise - that man, through the use of his hands as they are energized by mind and will, can influence the state of his own health.  That statement was provided to the profession by Mary Reilly, our greatest theoretician.It is a simple concept, borne out of a core philosophy of pragmatism and infused with a dose of all the good intentions of the moral treatment movement.  If you carefully read that core philosophy of occupational therapy you will hear the Emersonian reverberations of self-reliance: ' Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string. '  That is ...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - March 12, 2019 Category: Occupational Health Tags: OT Education OT practice philosophy Source Type: blogs