Sharon Davis is an occupational therapy assistant. She
spends her days helping people with disabilities and injuries.
She helps them improve their mobility and coordination.
She also works with a licensed occupational therapist. Together,
they help people learn to walk, eat, and perform daily tasks
by themselves.
Sharon was a stay-at-home mom until her husband was seriously
injured and left with a physical disability. He couldn't
work anymore, so Sharon looked for a full-time job. She
saw a newspaper ad for an occupational therapy assistant
program at a local community college, so she decided to
check it out.
She liked what she saw and got financial aid to go back
to school. It took Sharon three years to finish her Associate's
Degree in Applied Science. When her program ended, she spent
8 weeks doing clinical training at different sites.
Now Sharon works with elderly patients in a local hospital.
She uses problem-solving skills to help them learn and relearn
how to do things. She's always aware of the challenges
her patients face even as they dress themselves, eat, and
move around the hospital.
"All my life I've been taking care of people,"
Sharon says. "And that's what occupational therapy
is. My experiences raising three children and helping my
husband really prepared me for this job." She uses
exercise, coping and counseling services, and other resources
or services to help her patients become strong and independent.
Sharon sees 8-10 patients every day. She comes up with
plans for each patient based on their needs. She checks
their charts and their progress. She also does paperwork
and attends team meetings. "It can be stressful taking
care of people full-time," Sharon says. "You
definitely need to be open-minded and flexible. I enjoy
working with people and helping them learn how to do things
on their own." Now Sharon wants to get a Bachelor's
Degree in Health Art or Education.
Sharon
Davis
