Life Skill Needs of Occupational Therapy Assistant Students: Perceptions of Instructors, Preceptors, Graduates and Current Students
Life skills are the basic skills required to function in everyday life. Occupational therapy assistant (OTA) students may struggle with life skills, and as a result experience challenges in academics and practicum. The purpose of this phase of a multiphase study was to identify the life skill needs...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Eastern Kentucky University
2023-07-01
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| Series: | Journal of Occupational Therapy Education |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://encompass.eku.edu/jote/vol6/iss3/3/ |
| _version_ | 1797739890757074944 |
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| author | Candi Raudebaugh Marcia Finlayson Kathleen Norman Sally Stewart |
| author_facet | Candi Raudebaugh Marcia Finlayson Kathleen Norman Sally Stewart |
| author_sort | Candi Raudebaugh |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Life skills are the basic skills required to function in everyday life. Occupational therapy assistant (OTA) students may struggle with life skills, and as a result experience challenges in academics and practicum. The purpose of this phase of a multiphase study was to identify the life skill needs of OTA students from multiple perspectives. This study used a pragmatic qualitative design. Students in the second year of a 2-year therapy assistant diploma program, graduates, instructors, and preceptors participated in interviews or focus groups to discuss OTA students’ life skill needs. Interviews and focus groups were recorded and transcribed. Applied thematic analysis was used to analyze the interview and focus group data and draw conclusions. Common themes were identified: contributors to student success; impact of students’ life skills on clinical encounters; and life skills training needs. These themes were identified across all participant groups. Findings suggest that OTA students with lower confidence or abilities in life skills may also have lower confidence and success in clinical encounters. Life skills training tailored to OTA students may help students develop foundational skills to enhance their confidence and competence in relevant life skill areas. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T14:03:40Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-5662b902a549472d966c488e7b5f7a20 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2573-1378 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T14:03:40Z |
| publishDate | 2023-07-01 |
| publisher | Eastern Kentucky University |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Occupational Therapy Education |
| spelling | doaj.art-5662b902a549472d966c488e7b5f7a202023-08-21T15:49:32ZengEastern Kentucky UniversityJournal of Occupational Therapy Education2573-13782023-07-016310.26681/jote.2022.060303Life Skill Needs of Occupational Therapy Assistant Students: Perceptions of Instructors, Preceptors, Graduates and Current StudentsCandi Raudebaugh0Marcia Finlayson1Kathleen Norman2Sally Stewart3Queen's University - Kingston, Ontario, CanadaQueen's University, Kingston, Ontario, CanadaQueen's University, Kingston, Ontario, CanadaUniversity of British Columbia Okanagan, Kewlowna, British Columbia, CanadaLife skills are the basic skills required to function in everyday life. Occupational therapy assistant (OTA) students may struggle with life skills, and as a result experience challenges in academics and practicum. The purpose of this phase of a multiphase study was to identify the life skill needs of OTA students from multiple perspectives. This study used a pragmatic qualitative design. Students in the second year of a 2-year therapy assistant diploma program, graduates, instructors, and preceptors participated in interviews or focus groups to discuss OTA students’ life skill needs. Interviews and focus groups were recorded and transcribed. Applied thematic analysis was used to analyze the interview and focus group data and draw conclusions. Common themes were identified: contributors to student success; impact of students’ life skills on clinical encounters; and life skills training needs. These themes were identified across all participant groups. Findings suggest that OTA students with lower confidence or abilities in life skills may also have lower confidence and success in clinical encounters. Life skills training tailored to OTA students may help students develop foundational skills to enhance their confidence and competence in relevant life skill areas.https://encompass.eku.edu/jote/vol6/iss3/3/college studentslife skillsindependent living skillsdaily living skillsoccupational therapy assistant |
| spellingShingle | Candi Raudebaugh Marcia Finlayson Kathleen Norman Sally Stewart Life Skill Needs of Occupational Therapy Assistant Students: Perceptions of Instructors, Preceptors, Graduates and Current Students Journal of Occupational Therapy Education college students life skills independent living skills daily living skills occupational therapy assistant |
| title | Life Skill Needs of Occupational Therapy Assistant Students: Perceptions of Instructors, Preceptors, Graduates and Current Students |
| title_full | Life Skill Needs of Occupational Therapy Assistant Students: Perceptions of Instructors, Preceptors, Graduates and Current Students |
| title_fullStr | Life Skill Needs of Occupational Therapy Assistant Students: Perceptions of Instructors, Preceptors, Graduates and Current Students |
| title_full_unstemmed | Life Skill Needs of Occupational Therapy Assistant Students: Perceptions of Instructors, Preceptors, Graduates and Current Students |
| title_short | Life Skill Needs of Occupational Therapy Assistant Students: Perceptions of Instructors, Preceptors, Graduates and Current Students |
| title_sort | life skill needs of occupational therapy assistant students perceptions of instructors preceptors graduates and current students |
| topic | college students life skills independent living skills daily living skills occupational therapy assistant |
| url | https://encompass.eku.edu/jote/vol6/iss3/3/ |
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