Reflecting On Our Contributions as Occupational Therapy Practitioners

Aspire OT is always excited to celebrate OTs, OTAs, and students who make an impact.
Lynn Festa, OTR, CHT, CDWF, combines her work as an OT with providing training and guidance to professionals in promoting wellness and resilience and limiting burnout, through private coaching and education.  

It’s April, which means it’s time to celebrate Occupational Therapy month!

Although the field of OT is now 107 years old, it wasn’t until 1980 when April was declared the month to acknowledge and honor occupational therapy practitioners. This got me wondering what other professions and causes are also recognized during the month of April.

Turns out, we share the month of April with quite a few. What struck me the most was how many of these have been impacted by the dedicated work of occupational therapists, occupational therapy assistants and students. A few that stood out include ‘stress awareness month’, ‘autism acceptance month’, ‘garden month’, ‘celebrate diversity month’, and ‘arthritis awareness month’. In all these examples, you will find an occupational therapy practitioner (OTP) striving to make people’s lives better, whether it is providing activity modifications for the gardener who has arthritis in their hands and joints, to being strong advocates for inclusive policies, environments, and services that promote accessibility, equity, and social justice for individuals with disabilities and marginalized populations. And that is just a fraction of how impactful the profession is on so many people and communities.

In the final weeks and days of our official month of celebrating occupational therapy, my aspiration is that we take the time as practitioners to set aside time every day to cultivate a habit of reflection. Give yourself the gift of acknowledging all the positive ways you have enriched the lives of others. I challenge you to make this a daily gratitude from you to you. We know from the science of gratitude that this will in turn have a positive effect on you, creating the upward spiral the world needs right now. By celebrating what we do, and how well we do it, we will continue to be an integral part of what makes life better for ourselves and those we serve. Here’s to another century and beyond to the amazing contributions of the OTP. With gratitude.