OT Month Highlight: Addressing ³Ô¹ÏÍø OT Workforce Gap
Occupational Therapy Month is celebrated during the month of April. The ³Ô¹ÏÍø Occupational Therapy Doctorate Program celebrates OT month by sharing about occupational therapy and all the great that it does and celebrating our students and practitioners.
There are approximately 350 licensed occupational therapy practitioners practicing in the state of ³Ô¹ÏÍø, which ranks 43rd nationally, according to HealthTal. This means that there are approximately 31 occupational therapists per 100,000 people, which is below the average of approximately 45–50, and of the fifty-six counties in ³Ô¹ÏÍø, thirteen counties do not have licensed occupational therapists registered in their county. Occupational therapy can help individuals get back to doing what they enjoy and love, and with a shortage of occupational therapists in ³Ô¹ÏÍø, there’s a need to add to the workforce. The ³Ô¹ÏÍø is the first state-run occupational therapy doctorate program in the state of ³Ô¹ÏÍø, and UM OT is committed to helping address the workforce shortage by educating the next generation of occupational therapists.