Post job

Explore jobs

Find specific jobs

Explore careers

Explore professions

Best companies

Explore companies

OverviewJobsSalaryResume

Skills

What They DoEducationDemographicsJob DescriptionHow To HireBest CompaniesBest StatesBest CitiesJob OutlookCompareFull Time jobs
zippia ai icon

Automatically apply for jobs with Zippia

Upload your resume to get started.

Staff occupational therapist skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025
3 min read
Quoted experts
Dr. Julie Estes,
Dr. Julie Estes
Staff occupational therapist example skills
Below we've compiled a list of the most critical staff occupational therapist skills. We ranked the top skills for staff occupational therapists based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 26.9% of staff occupational therapist resumes contained patients as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a staff occupational therapist needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 staff occupational therapist skills for your resume and career

1. Patients

Here's how staff occupational therapists use patients:
  • Designed and implemented treatment plans to help patients recover functional mobility in preparation for role resumption at home and within community.
  • Rendered occupational therapy services including evaluation, treatment planning, implementation and documentation for patients at several Skilled Nursing facilities.

2. Rehabilitation

Here's how staff occupational therapists use rehabilitation:
  • Provided full range of occupational therapy services in an inpatient rehabilitation setting with largely an orthopedic population.
  • Designed and implemented protocols for initial patient evaluations and discharge summaries on the facility's Rehabilitation Unit.

3. Physical Therapy

Here's how staff occupational therapists use physical therapy:
  • Conduct weekly occupational therapy evaluations as well as joint evaluations with physical therapy using standardized assessments.
  • Supervised Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy and Speech Therapy clinicians.

4. Occupational Therapy

Here's how staff occupational therapists use occupational therapy:
  • Provided home and school system occupational therapy evaluation and treatment services to children with developmental, neurological and genetic disorders.
  • Provided routine supervision to Certified Occupational Therapy Assistants as outlined by the Maryland State Board of Occupational Therapy Practice Act.

5. COTA

Here's how staff occupational therapists use cota:
  • Performed evaluations, provided patient treatment, supervised COTA
  • Supervised a COTA under disciplinary action.

6. Direct Patient Care

Here's how staff occupational therapists use direct patient care:
  • Provide direct patient care to a variety of diagnosis: orthopedics, cardiac, general medical, and oncology.
  • Provided direct patient care and developed UE treatment programs to include documentation, billing/coding, and ordering equipment/supplies.

Choose from 10+ customizable staff occupational therapist resume templates

Build a professional staff occupational therapist resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your staff occupational therapist resume.

7. Acute Care

The branch of secondary healthcare which is responsible for giving short-term care to patients recovering from severe injuries or urgent medical problems is known as acute care. Acute care comprises multiple domains like; emergency care, urgent care, short-term stabilization, pre-hospital care, critical care, and trauma care.

Here's how staff occupational therapists use acute care:
  • Provided evaluation, intervention, and discharge planning in cardiopulmonary acute care setting
  • Provide occupational evaluation and treatment planning in acute care and outpatient settings.

8. Home Health

Here's how staff occupational therapists use home health:
  • Consult with other direct-care staff and work with caregivers to determine discharge placement and needs, including Home Health.
  • Performed clinical OT services at Kane Community Hospital for acute, sub-acute, out-patient and home health departments.

9. Discharge Planning

Here's how staff occupational therapists use discharge planning:
  • Assisted in discharge planning and recommendation of adaptive equipment/DME needs for maximal functional independence.
  • Provide family training and education to facilitate discharge planning.

10. Family Education

Here's how staff occupational therapists use family education:
  • Performed comprehensive OT evaluation and treatment, focused on patient and family education.
  • Complete care plans and assessments and provide family education.

11. Traumatic Brain Injury

Here's how staff occupational therapists use traumatic brain injury:
  • Provided OT intervention to the Traumatic Brain Injury population.
  • Worked with individuals diagnosed with Traumatic Brain Injury and other neurological impairments.

12. OTR

Here's how staff occupational therapists use otr:
  • Supervised Level 2 OTR students.
  • Supervised Level 1 OTR students.

13. Treatment Programs

Here's how staff occupational therapists use treatment programs:
  • Participated in the development of programs utilized in Day Treatment Programs in the community; Implemented treatment in community base centers.
  • Conducted evaluations, created treatment programs and classroom strategies.

14. Program Development

Program development refers to a road for developers to guide them on creating and developing viable community programs. Since it provides an action plan for the project, it is a continuous process that only ends with the program's full implementation.

Here's how staff occupational therapists use program development:
  • Participated in program development for interdisciplinary treatment model of stroke/head injury unit.
  • Participate in iPad application selection and program development for selected students.

15. Patient Treatment

Here's how staff occupational therapists use patient treatment:
  • Performed evaluations and provided patient treatment in individual and group environments.
  • Performed patient treatments and documentation in individual client files.
top-skills

What skills help Staff Occupational Therapists find jobs?

Tell us what job you are looking for, we’ll show you what skills employers want.

What skills stand out on staff occupational therapist resumes?

Dr. Julie Estes

Assistant Clinical Instructor, Northeastern State University

This would depend, is the OT was a new graduate or a practicing therapist? When looking at resumes from recent graduates, I look for participation in their programs clubs such as the Student Occupational Therapy Association (SOTA), fieldwork experiences, and if they took additional opportunities to get experience through job shadowing outside of the program required fieldwork. When looking at resumes from practicing therapists, experience is also important, but I look to see how much time they have spent at their previous jobs. If the person's resume shows that they have a pattern of changing jobs every 1-2 years, that is a red flag. Continuing education and additional certifications also show that the therapist takes the initiative to hone their skills to benefit their clients.

What soft skills should all staff occupational therapists possess?

Dr. Julie Estes

Assistant Clinical Instructor, Northeastern State University

Many soft skills are essential such as:

-Energy and enthusiasm for your field, loving what you do, and wanting to make a difference in clients' lives.

-Strong interpersonal skills and knowing how to relate to people from different backgrounds and cultures.

-Being sincere and knowing how to show empathy and compassion toward clients going through difficult challenges in their lives.

-Organizational skills: knowing how to organize a daily schedule in any setting is essential due to time constraints such as productivity. Allowing time to make sure each client is seen while sometimes working around others' schedules such as physicians, teachers, other therapists. OTs need to be present and provide treatment for each client while not disrupting the workflow of others, such as physicians, teachers, or other therapists.

-Flexibility, being prepared for each day (client, meetings, etc.), but knowing that things can change in an instant and having a backup plan. Going in with a plan A, but knowing you may have to use plan B, C or D. We work with people from all walks of life and stages of life; being okay with knowing that your plan may not go as expected is essential.

-Problem solving, we are professional problem solvers. The Department of Labor's ONet OnLine categorizes occupational therapy as an "investigative occupation." We look at an individual's daily routine, goals, and environment, identify barriers, and plan treatments that help modify, build, or restore daily living skills and independence.

What hard/technical skills are most important for staff occupational therapists?

Dr. Julie Estes

Assistant Clinical Instructor, Northeastern State University

-Effective communication and collaboration: OT's work not only with clients but family members, doctors, other professionals such as occupational therapy assistants, physical therapists, and insurance companies in various settings. This job requires that we collaborate with various individuals for the benefit of the clients. Being able to communicate in written and verbal format is a vital component to team success. The ability to explain medical jargon to clients so they understand and proficiently write notes regarding client intervention detailing progress can make the difference in reimbursement and client discharge plans.

-Knowing medical terminology, physical and neurological needs of clients, including protocols for specific diagnoses and treatments, helps in planning intervention while preventing further injury to our clients.

-Good observational skills include looking at clients' complete daily tasks, breaking the activity down to identify barriers, and collaborating with the client to develop an effective treatment plan to help them return to what they find meaningful is our focus.

-Though our job is hands-on, we must also have technological skills for documentation purposes (electronic medical records). With COVID-19, understanding how to see clients virtually has been a learning curve for some.

What staff occupational therapist skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?

Nicole Scheiman DrOT, MHS, OTR/L, CLT-LANA, CES, CKTP, CEES-Advanced, CSST, CDCS, CORENicole Scheiman DrOT, MHS, OTR/L, CLT-LANA, CES, CKTP, CEES-Advanced, CSST, CDCS, CORE LinkedIn profile

Department Chair/Program Director/ Professor, Huntington University

Occupational therapy is a rewarding profession to enter for several reasons: 1. Growing Demand, 2. Diverse Opportunities, 3. Holistic Approach, 4. Focus on Functionality, 5. Opportunities for Creativity, 6. Interdisciplinary Collaboration.

What technical skills for a staff occupational therapist stand out to employers?

Julie Seidle Ph.D.

Instructor & Research Associate, Colorado State University

As a community-based practitioner and employer, I look for a practitioner that has a strong foundational knowledge of OT and the technical skills needed for the practice setting. But I am also looking for someone who has strong interpersonal skills and demonstrates openness and flexibility to an ever-changing practice space. I enjoy working with practitioners who are creative with their skill set and can adjust to a variety of client needs. Practitioners also need to be able to take initiative and work well with all levels of the client system.
Do you want to know more?
Read more about what experts have to say about staff occupational therapist

List of staff occupational therapist skills to add to your resume

Staff occupational therapist skills

The most important skills for a staff occupational therapist resume and required skills for a staff occupational therapist to have include:

  • Patients
  • Rehabilitation
  • Physical Therapy
  • Occupational Therapy
  • COTA
  • Direct Patient Care
  • Acute Care
  • Home Health
  • Discharge Planning
  • Family Education
  • Traumatic Brain Injury
  • OTR
  • Treatment Programs
  • Program Development
  • Patient Treatment
  • CVA
  • ADL
  • Inpatient Rehabilitation
  • Occupational Therapy Assistants
  • Developmental Delays
  • Adaptive Equipment
  • SNF
  • Level II
  • Splints
  • Cerebral Palsy
  • Early Intervention
  • Durable Medical Equipment
  • Sensory Integration
  • Sensory Processing
  • IEP
  • NDT
  • Spinal Cord Injury
  • Physical Disabilities
  • Outpatient Clinic
  • Developmental Disabilities
  • Outpatient Services
  • Alzheimer
  • ICU
  • Independent Living
  • MDS
  • FIM
  • Staff Education
  • Family Training
  • Hand Therapy
  • COPD
  • Orthopedic Injuries
  • Staff Training
  • UE
  • Hand Injuries

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse healthcare practitioner and technical jobs