Occupational Therapy Business Tips
October 21, 2024
Come October, clinicians have the opportunity to celebrate Occupational Therapy Month, an annual and purposeful recognition of the profession since its 1980 conception. Due to common barriers like limited time with colleagues, OTs may struggle with forming ideas to commemorate the profession. In this article, we will discuss the meaning as well asunique and fun ways to celebrate Occupational Therapy Month.
Occupational therapy emerged after World War I. Since then, the profession has grown. Although occupational therapy is recognized in a wide variety of healthcare and community settings, practitioners continue to raise awareness about what they do. OT Month allows therapists to celebrate and promote their sought-after skill set.
Let’s explore the following unique and fun ways to celebrate Occupational Therapy Month!
Join Facebook, Instagram, and other social media occupational therapy groups and promote the profession with memorable quotes. Social media posts + examples include inspirational and/or humorous quotes from renowned clinicians. Sharing inspirational OT quotes sparks conversations and helps clinicians form or rejuvenate existing communities.
If you run an OT practice, block out the month of October to run a promotion. This includes discounts on adaptive equipment, therapy supplies, or other resources to improve fellow OTs’ practices. Board members of state and national OT organizations may also run continuing education, membership, and merchandise promotions.
Invest in t-shirts or other wearable items that are laced with occupational therapy jargon and OT Month logos. Occupational Therapy Month merchandise is an easy ice-breaker in casual conversations and can open up a dialogue to explain what OTs do.
Frequently, state and national OT associations advertise giveaways and other incentives during occupational therapy month. Giveaways can be simple like OT Month merchandise or a free, 1-year association membership. If you represent an association, OT practitioners may also run similar giveaways and select one or several lucky winners.
Schedule a lunch meeting with coworkers during occupational therapy month and pair it with amazing food. Select topics that promote OT and provide colleagues with the latest in research and resources. If possible, raise the incentive by fulfilling criteria for colleagues to earn continuing education credit. ClinicSense offers Lunch & Learns for practitioners to join and watch.
Provide fellow occupational therapists with congenial thank-you cards to acknowledge their profession, workplace efforts, and unique talents. Depending on the environment, cards may be paired with simple gifts like OT Month keychains, candy, or similar gestures to recognize their irreplaceable contribution to healthcare.
Mark the calendar for a business open house with colleagues, current clients, and prospective clients. Take the time, through catering and visual presentation, to promote therapy business and occupational therapy’s vital roles in rehabilitation. Converse with future clients about what makes your clinic stand out from others.
Bring your community together and host a painting session during occupational therapy month and pair it with a continuing education seminar. Hire an artist and/or paint therapist. Attendees can register and pay for supplies beforehand, and paint-outs can be complemented with refreshments and/or beverages.
Throughout Occupational Therapy Month, nominate an OT coworker or colleague for a spotlight moment. Send a short list of interview questions to the nominee, have them send the information back, and post their spotlight answers on the business website or social media platforms if appropriate.
Shop around for customized merchandise options including T-shirts, keychains, pens, mugs, caps, sunglasses, magnets, notebooks, and other swag items that could carry OT clinic logos. Giveaways could include all colleagues and clients or could be regulated with drawings, OT clinic surveys, or raffles to select lucky winners.
Reach out to colleagues and friends to promote a fundraiser for a cause you are passionate about. This could include non-profit foundations or other groups that do not financially conflict with your OT business practice. Run the fundraiser throughout Occupational Therapy Month.
Since 1930, CAOT has been running the countrywide annual conference during the month of October to pair events intentionally with Occupational Therapy Month. Make financial and time commitments to attend state or national OT conferences to expand your “OT toolbox” and improve your OT business practice.
Hop on to social media platforms regularly throughout Occupational Therapy Month and post fun facts regarding the OT profession. This could include, but not limited to, history trivia, “Did You Know” facts, short blips on the latest research, and “What Is This?” adaptive equipment that is rare or hard to identify.
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An Activities of Daily Living event could be an OT Olympics, competitive relay races, or other games that promote the OT profession through the use of ADL tools and techniques. Examples include bean bag tosses, reacher grabber games, donning TED hose with sock aids, hemi-dressing techniques, and the list goes on.
While celebrating Occupational Therapy Month sounds fun, practitioners struggle with carrying it out due to time constraints or lack of community. If you want to grow your OT business, expand your community, and acquire OT Month ideas from fellow clinicians, ClinicSense provides the tools needed via a community hub.
ClinicSense is a practice management software program that helps OT clinics organize documentation, employment services, and client scheduling. Additionally, ClinicSense provides a community hub for members and non-members to congregate, gain support, and coordinate ideas and resources for OT business practice.
Through ClinicSense’s community hub, occupational therapists can share tips, provide professional support, and join in for regular Lunch & Learns to empower fellow OT practitioners and relevant community groups. Occupational Therapy Month is an excellent time to participate in community outreach to increase clientele and to promote OT. Check out ClinicSense Community Hub today for Lunch & Learns and additional support from fellow OT practitioners.
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