Occupational therapy is a health care service which uses a variety of skills and techniques – including daily life tasks, activities, exercises, or adaptive equipment to help people learn the skills they need to live as independently as possible.  Occupational therapy assistants, under the supervision of occupational therapists, help people prevent, lessen, or overcome physical and mental disabilities so that they are able to function independently.  Facilities in which they can work include hospitals, nursing facilities, schools, private clinics and community agencies.

The program is designed to be completed in eight quarters when taken on a full-time basis.  It  includes a combination of biological and behavioral sciences, and technical occupational therapy assistant courses.  It also includes extensive clinical training which must be completed within 12 months of completion of the academic course work.  Students are required to have experiences with people of all ages and types of problems.

Graduates of the program will be eligible to sit for the national certification examination for the occupational therapy assistant administered by the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT).  After successful completion of this examination, the individual will be a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant (COTA) and be eligible for licensure in the State of Ohio.  A felony conviction may affect a graduate’s ability to sit for the NBCOT certification examination or attain state licensure. 

Accreditation

The Occupational Therapy Assistant Program at Sinclair Community College is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), located at 4720 Montgomery Lane, P.O. Box 31220, Bethesda, MD 20824-1220.  AOTA’s phone number is (301) 652-2682.  The program received a 10 year reaccreditation in 2003.  It is scheduled to be reaccredited in 2013.