Filtered by tag: FOTA Remove Filter

FOCUS Quarterly Deadline Approaching

FOCUS quarterly
FOCUS QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER DEADLINE IS MARCH 15

FOTA Boosts Quarterly Publication 

In a persistent move towards meeting the needs of its membership and readers, FOCUS, the official publication of the Florida Occupational Therapy Association (FOTA) has been renamed The FOCUS Quarterly.  The Author’s Guidelines have been adapted to include formal review of submitted materials, and inclusion of a variety of opportunities for the novice and seasoned writers in the community of occupational therapy and collaborating partners.  

Read More

Human Trafficking CE Requirement

Hello,

Just a reminder that there is now a requirement for a Human Trafficking CE

Read More

Manualization of Occupational Therapy Interventions: A Crucial but Overlooked Step in Building Evidence

Manualization of Occupational Therapy Interventions: A Crucial but Overlooked Step in Building Evidence

Manualization of an intervention is an essential component in the implementation of research studies. When collaborating on research teams, manualization gives a template to check for fidelity and thus determine if the intervention is carried out in the way in which it was intended by the program developers. Murphy and Gutman (2012) have outlined essential elements in intervention fidelity that are often absent from study descriptions. For example, within the intervention manual researchers should describe the intervention design to include the number, length, and frequency of intervention sessions. The researchers should explain both the theoretical framework and any clinical guidelines that provided the foundation for the intervention. The manual must also define the “active ingredients” or elements of the intervention proven to be responsible for changes in specific outcomes, often quite complex in intervention research. Careful consideration must be given to the training of individuals who will be implementing the study’s procedures. Implementation training is not only outlined in the manual, but the manual content can also be used for training purposes. Written/electronic intervention manuals can be an important tool to assist in fidelity as they provide a means to articulate the distinct differences of the intervention and ensure outcomes are replicated.

Read More

FOTA... Who We Are

FOTA...

Who We Are

The Florida Occupational Therapy Association (FOTA) is an all volunteer organization with the exception of one paid employee. That one employee, which many of you who have contacted the organization already know, is named Janine. She is fantastic at what she does for the organization, handling many of the day to day tasks that administratively need to be addressed. FOTA proudly represents the interest of over 16,000+ occupational therapy practitioners (occupational therapists, occupational therapy assistants, and students). Currently, membership in our organization is approximately 1,000 total members, with half of those members being students (our future practitioners). Of the 500 approximate practitioners, we have 50 or so practitioners who are tasked with running the organization and the scope of its reach. So, you might ask, why all the honesty? Because FOTA believes in transparency and we feel it is important you know who we are and what we do. We also need to be honest in expressing how necessary you are to that definition, as we are all simultaneously co-evolving.

Read More

Trauma and Trauma Informed (TI) Approaches to Care:Applications to Occupational Therapy Practice

Trauma and Trauma Informed (TI) Approaches to Care:Applications to Occupational Therapy Practice

by Mirtha Montejo Whaley, PhD, MPH, OTR/L

Trauma is widespread and has profound effects that can lead to emotional and physical distress throughout the lifespan. Statistics from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on abuse and violence in the United States indicate the following:

Read More

The Role of Occupational Therapy: Providing Care in a Pandemic

From AOTA

The Role of Occupational Therapy: Providing Care in a Pandemic

This is an unprecedented time in health care that is evolving every day. Due to the outbreak of COVID-19, many organizations and occupational therapy practitioners are struggling with the question, “what is the appropriate role of occupational therapy during a pandemic?” Guidance from federal agencies is continually shared as the status of the pandemic within the United States is evolving on a daily basis. AOTA urges occupational therapy practitioners to continue to check guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) for the most up-to-date information. More

COVID-19 Update and Resources


 COVID-19 Update and Resources


March 22, 2020 

FOTA recognizes the impact of Covid-19 (coronavirus) on individuals, families, the nation, and our world as we all adapt to these uncertain times. OT Practitioners across the state of Florida have all been challenged to remain healthy and ensure safe practices to prevent further community spread. As many of you have worked in various sectors or continue to be on the front lines, the influx of executive orders at the local, state, and national level can cause confusion as to what steps to take next. Of the utmost importance is to ensure your safety and that of your family, while following orders to reduce and prevent community spread.


Read More
2 Comments

Trauma and TraumaInformed (TI) Approaches to Care: Applications to Occupational Therapy Practice

Trauma and Trauma Informed (TI) Approaches to Care: Applications to Occupational Therapy Practice

Trauma is widespread and has profound effects that can lead to emotional and physical distress throughout the lifespan. Statistics from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on abuse and violence in the United States indicate the following:

Read More

Musings on Oxytocin in Things We Do and Those We Care about Abstract

Musings on Oxytocin in Things We Do and Those We Care about

Abstract

Read More

Wellness & Health Promotion is Center Stage

Wellness & Health Promotion is Center Stage

Wellness and health promotion efforts appear to be at center stage, as the society becomes more aware about the burden of chronic diseases over the lifespan. This knowledge fosters the understanding that lifestyle choices can have a significant impact on prevalence of chronic diseases (Snelling, 2014). The American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) has identified Health and Wellness as a key practice area in the 21st century (AOTA, 2015). According to AOTA, “factors that will drive an increasing need for wellness-related services are based on an accumulating body of scientific evidence that an individual’s health is directly related to physical as well as emotional well-being” (AOTA, 2015) . To support practice, AOTA provides extensive resources for Health and Wellness practice embedded within occupational therapy, including evidence-based literature, technology applications to support domains of health, and professional development opportunities.

Read More

Poised For Success

Poised for Success

(First in a series of articles describing FOTA’s Leadership Development Program)
 By Susan Hermes, OTD, BCP, OTR/L and Elena Vizvary, MS, OTR/L

 
FOTA has a long history of being a leader in occupational therapy state associations and innovations as one of the early established state associations and licensure. The Leadership Development Initiative emerged from passionate members approaching elected leadership of Florida Occupational Therapy Association (FOTA). These members had been involved with American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) Emerging Leaders and Emerging Managers programs with positive professional outcomes. The question was raised if something similar would be a match for the membership needs and the FOTA strategic plan. A small committee was formed to determine if mentoring or leadership was the direction that would fit the current members needs, marketing, and leadership efforts. Compromise and constant collaboration to make sure sequential steps were followed to gather information and align with evidence based content to guide the successive years.

2016 OT/OTA Student Survey


Read More

It's Really A Thing

It's Really A Thing 

Mirtha M. Whaley, PhD, MPH, OTR/L, SIS Chair, Mental Health

Read More

The Executive Order and OT Implications: The Rising Suicide Rate in Baby Boomers and the Role of Occupational Therapy

The Executive Order and OT Implications: The Rising Suicide Rate in Baby Boomers and the Role of Occupational Therapy

Anjali K. Parti, OTD, OTR/L Gerontology Co-Chair Annette Bullard, COTA, Gerontology Co-Chair

At the Florida Occupational Therapy Association (FOTA) conference in 2018, Anjali Parti and Annette Bullard hosted a Conversations that Matter that was very well attended, many OT practitioners voiced an interest in doing more for mental health in the VA setting. We have decided to re-visit this important topic due to President Trump’s recent Executive Order signed March 5, 2019. Here is some information on the order and what the order entails:

Read More

And The Award Goes To....

AND THE AWARD GOES TO….

 This #FOTA19 , as part of our yearly conference, we want to recognize all of our FOTA  members that have made remarkable contributions to our field of Occupational Therapy. There is just one thing ... we need your help to make this happen! We encourage you to nominate individuals that you feel have set the bar and exemplify the core values and ethics of Occupational Therapy. This is the opportunity to acknowledge, celebrate, and show our shared passion and appreciation with members of our community! Help us continue to celebrate and empassion our members by taking a moment to complete the nomination form. Awards will be released during the FOTA Annual Membership Meeting to be held during the FOTA annual conference.

Click to Nominate for an Award 



Read More

Congratulations to our 36 New Leadership Program Participants, June 8th, 2019

Congratulations to our 36 New Leadership Program Participants, June 8th, 2019 

Leadership Development Program Event

 

Read More

Summer Updates

From the President: Summer 2018 -- From the FOCUS Newsletter

Hello and Happy Summer!

  

Pictured Left to Right are our voting board members and President-elect. Cathy Peirce, Ric Carrasco, Douglene Jackson, Tia Hughes, Kathy Frahm, Brent Cheyne, Elise Bloch, Debbie Misrahi, and Kelly Uanino.

Read More

child mental health awareness day

Celebrating National Children's Mental Health Day: May 10th, 2018

 Join the FOTA leadership and membership in acknowledging National Children's Mental Health Day, May 10th, 2018. In service of our FOTA vision to be the respected authority on occupational therapy’s contribution to health and well-being in Florida, we have assembled a humble offering of clinician's resources and supportive information for OTs from across the state to use in service to children's mental health. Our Ad Hoc Committee on School Mental Health is developing further programming to offer to our members in the future, and we are developing policy statements to share with our advocacy team and our Florida legislators. 

FOTA believes in the potential for OT practitioners to impact child well being and provide new and innovative programs to meet the needs of our students in schools across Florida. We believe in the preventative model, nurturing social and emotional learning, and skills for emotional regulation, social skills, and collaborative learning -- all through occupation-based activities. Please take time today, and everyday to nurture the wellness of children in your life and in your practice. See our resources below --an assemblage that is still a work in development.  Take Care!

Read More

President's Blog: March Musings

From The President: Spring FOCUS 2018

Hello FOTA Members! And welcome visitors to the blog, we hope you join us in FOTA, as an OT You Belong!

Read More

Guest Blog: On Parkland --Mirtha Whaley, PhD, OTR/L

 

Guest Blog: On Parkland

 

Read More

Happy 2018

Happy 2018! As we say goodbye to 2017, we can all take account of the highlights, rewards, and challenges of the past year and move forward looking to improve. At FOTA, our commitment is to support you as a member in practice, education, and advocacy in this new year. The FOTA board is working together on developing future leaders in our organization through our Ad Hoc committee on Leadership Development. After last fall’s success with our OTA Leadership course, we plan to offer a continuing education course to select future leaders this spring. Our commitment is to foster and support leadership in FOTA for our success in the future. Your opportunity to be involved includes volunteering for an event, project, or committee, and serving on the FOTA board. The FOTA Elections 2018 will take place in March, where nominations for President-elect and Secretary will open on the website January 22nd.

 

Read More


Amazon searches starting from www.flota.org benefit FOTA!