Continuing Education Courses for Occupational Therapists

Occupational therapists specialize in helping patients to improve physical and mental functions that have an impact on independent working and living. Occupational therapists assist patients with emotional, physical, developmental or mental issues, and treatment consists of a variety of activities to strengthen reasoning abilities and motor skills.

Certifications

• Occupational therapists are regulated in all 50 states and must pass a national exam after graduating from an accredited program or school. Upon passing the exam, the occupational therapists are certified as an occupational therapist registered, or OTR. Licensing requirements vary from state to state.

Licensing Renewal

• Many states require as a condition of maintaining and renewing licensure that occupational therapists continue professional development through continuing education (CE) courses. CE classes can be classified by the practice area such as children and youth, aging or mental health, or by the type of course, including webcast or online. Regional workshops are available for live CE training as well as home study, conferences and audio/visual tapes and DVDs.

National Organizations for CE Courses

• National organizations like the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) offer a variety of courses that can be taken to satisfy CE learning. The AOTA also offers a list of live or distance learning CE classes through approved providers that qualify for credit recognized by 24 state licensing boards.

  Online courses offered through AOTA can be accessed 24 hours a day for 2 weeks after registering for a course and an 80 percent pass rate for the course to be eligible toward continuing education credit. Approximately 90 courses are available including Genetics in the Forefront, Putting IDEA 97 Into Practice, Models for Community-Based Psychosocial Practice, It's Your Future: Strategies for Promoting Occupational Therapy, Outcomes: The Key to Successful Program Management, Publishing: What To Do and What Not To Do and many more.

Online Organizations for CE Courses

• Occupational therapists can use online sources to complete continuing education. OnlineCE.com is a source for health professionals to obtain continuing education. The service offers a free hour of continuing education and registration as well as a list of each state's online credit requirements. Dozens of occupational therapy courses include, among many others, AIDS, Pediatrics, Shoulder Rehab, Therapeutic Modalities, Upper Extremity Anatomy, and Wound Management.

Considerations

• The minimum number of CE courses and the time frame in which the courses are to be completed vary by state. Additionally, each state has rules on what CE courses can be transferred from another state. The Georgia State Board of Occupational Therapy, for example, required 24 hours of continuing education, with at least 16 of those hours in direct patient care and no more than 8 in general subjects each year, with a biannual review.