i am going to do a degree course but i don't no if to do occupational therapy or physiotherapy please help me

Answer 1

I definitely suggest you do more research as they are two completely different professions! Yes OTs do sometimes work in physical settings alongside physios but they take a very different view of the patient and have different therapeutic goals. I think to understand how different they are you need to look into how occupational therapists work in mental health settings.

The underlying theory behind OT is that engaging in 'occupation' (eg everyday activities like shopping, housework, hobbies, work) makes us who we are. Eg, think of the hobbies, studying that you currently do, if you did none of those things and just sat around all day you wouldn't feel like yourself would you?. OT is about rehabilitating people back into doing the things they love, the things that make them feel useful, building up their confidence, concentration, social skills. You know how time goes slow when you have nothing to do, well OT is about engaging people in activities so they lose sense of time, spending it in a meaningful way (the old "time flies when you're having fun"). The variety of jobs you could apply for as an OT are very broad too as the skills are very transferrable. Eg, working with homeless people getting them back into employment.

Have a look at this online book about OT and mental health.

http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=J-WxUXWYWxkC&oi=fnd&pg=PT5&sig=BhfyrlmTUySHIVPNOQ1YLIYAxQw&dq=%22Creek%22+%22Occupational+therapy+and+mental+health:+Principles,+...%22+#PPT111,M1

Yes physical OTs will also need a basic understanding of muscles and movement too, and would use this knowledge to physically rehabilitate somebody using activiites, but they look at stuff beyond this too as above. But a physiotherapist is primarily concerned with understanding how the body works, muscles, tendons, bones, nerves. They will mainly treat clients by doing exercises with them, massage, So do you want to learn about human anatomy, do you like learning facts (like muscles and bones) or do you want more variety? To do an OT degree you need to be able to cope with ambiguity.

For instance my OT course doesn't have much taught anatomy at all. Good luck choosing and hope this helps, obviously this is from an OT point of view and I don't know loads about physio.

Answer 2

Its important to understand what the everyday realities of your job will be because that's exactly what you'll have to live with. I certainly agree that you should arrange to shadow a professional if you possibly can. Ask yourself this - do you want to spend your time helping people to walk, to breathe and to use mobility aids or do you want to carry out home visits and assess whether people can manage to carry out their aspects of daily lives? Any job in health care is a huge responsibility requiring supernatural patience. These little snippets are based on what I've observed working in a hospital and are very over-simplified. You can never research anything too much. Good luck with your degree!

Answer 3

I suggest you do a bit more research, maybe shadow each therapist around for a few days and talk to them to see what they do and if they enjoy it.

Personally, I would go for the physio option. It is probably harder work, but the prospects are much better, with the private sector wide open to you, including sports therapy.

Answer 4

Both are in ultra-high demand, so it will be very easy to find a job no matter where you live.
OT has a bit more variety than PT; however, rehab directors are usually PTs, and they will make a bit more money.

Answer 5

suggest english degree!!