Level 1 Fieldwork

I’m one week away from finishing my first level-one fieldwork. I cannot believe how fast this semester has gone by. It’s been a blur between quizzes, assignments, tests, and projects-- I can barely keep track of the day. While I love being in class (if you haven’t caught on yet, I’m a huge nerd) getting to practice my OT skills is amazing.

I have been working at Palmer Courts since January. Palmer Courts provides long-term housing for people who are chronically homeless. Mental health disorders and substance misuse is very common in this demographic. The combination of these disorders is incredibly tricky to treat. There are many aspects of health and wellness that are disrupted because of these diagnoses. I honestly don’t know how therapists and case managers handle everything so well because it can be so overwhelming.

For my first fieldwork, I have really lucked out. My supervisor has given me and my partner, Abby, a lot of support, and also autonomy to do our thing. She and the other case managers have been so helpful and given us insight about effective strategies to connect with the residents. We have been able to practice a lot of the skills we’ve learned this semester. Abby and I have worked on a lot of different ideas for clients and for the facility to enhance occupational participation. Some of our projects include:

1. Performed an initial interview with two residents to establish occupational goals
2. Creating an exercise program for a client who wanted to improve mobility
3. Organize an apartment to increase apartment accessibility for a resident who had a stroke
4. Create a weekly chore chart to help the resident with a stroke maintain apartment organization
5. Designed healthy, and easy recipes that incorporated common items from the food pantry
6. Teach a class on health and wellness. We are actually doing this next week. We will be providing nutrition information and making smoothies!

As you can see, no day in fieldwork has been the same. We really aim to promote health and wellness through an occupational frame. As I continue in the program, my skills will become more refined, and technical. Right now, our focus has been to build strong relationships with clients, incorporating our therapeutic use of self, and improving my critical thinking skills.

Abby and I have talked, and planned, and executed a lot of different ideas and strategies. It’s thrilling, and also exhausting. Fieldwork feels like I’m exercising a muscle that I have never used before. It’s critical thinking at its finest. We are constantly evaluating ourselves and refining ideas. It’s the best space to practice and play with ideas. If they are not successful then we can go back and re-evaluate.

Although it’s my first fieldwork, and I have nothing else to compare it to, it’s been incredible. We have two, level-one fieldworks that are community-based. This first one does not have an OT in the setting. Our program places students in a non-OT setting for two reasons. 

1) OT is community based, and is always striving to expand 

2) It introduces OT to settings that might not know about occupational therapy.

The beautiful thing about this profession is that it’s what you make of it. There is so much creativity that is based in the practice. Occupational therapy is about people. It’s about human nature, helping others thrive, and discovering ways to enhance our client’s quality of life.

The Relationship Between Occupational Therapy and English: Why I Chose to Study Both

I was chatting with a good friend this week when she asked me why I jumped from my background in English (my undergraduate degree) to OT. Personally, I always saw them as two similar topics. Analytical English is about understanding the author, piece, context, and diction in order to gain a comprehensive understanding of themes and ideas. People work in the same way. In order to truly understand a person, you need to know them-- personally, and understand their environment, and occupations. Understanding text and people always felt so similar. Whether it’s writing a final thesis, or developing an intervention plan, critical thinking skills are essential. People are grand puzzles, and you will likely never complete the full piece-- but it’s a joy to try.

Early on, I discovered the connection I felt between the two subjects. Since OT is not an undergraduate degree, I was able to choose a major that prepared me for graduate school, but not necessarily specific skills to help me land a job. This is a luxury! I got to read, and write, and explore ideas I would have never discovered before. I found out that I am fascinated with technology, and love reading sci-fi more than I previously thought. If you find yourself in a similar situation, I HIGHLY recommend exploring a subject you love just because you love it.

I had a lot of scrutiny from friends, family, and strangers about studying the humanities. People like to jump to assessments that the humanities lead down an aimless road with limited job opportunities. I’m going to be frank, these people are wrong. Like any degree, you get out what you put in. If you do the bare minimum, and let opportunities pass by then yes, you will likely be in a rough situation. But if you let academia consume you, share ideas with your professors, be open to criticism, want to learn and be better, connect with other nerds like you-- then you will never be aimless. You learn the best when you are uncomfortable. Growth never occurs when you are in the same place.

Even though I usually hate the process of being pushed, I can see progress I’ve made. Personally, I do not think I have grown more than within the past year. There have been moments of euphoria when I feel a concept or idea click. I have been dreaming and imagining what I want to do more than I have in years. There have also been moments when I have cried myself to sleep. Not because I am stressed, but because growth is challenging and sometime I just need a good cry.  

People are not meant to be complacent. We are designed to move, explore, and reach past the point of comfort. But we have to lay a good foundation. Our desires have to be authentic. Find your thing. I have said this many times in other posts, but find the thing that consumes you. Get a little obsessive. There is so much beauty in the unknown. If you are smart, and keep a big picture plan in front of you, you’ll get where you need to go.