Personal Statement: Occupational Therapy
To some, choosing a career is somehow difficult and almost impossible and when they realize what they want to do, it is too late. In my case, I have always had a knack for choosing a career within the care industry the moment I learned one of my relatives was working in such a field. Through observing her on some occasion when growing up, I came to the decision and realization that the career in occupational therapy was something I could do based on my interests, personal abilities and knowledge in the field at the moment (which I took to be more than enough for a person making a life-time decision when it comes to career decision making). Apart from what I need and what my capacities are in choosing the career, I am impressed by how legit the whole process is, let alone being fulfilling as there is the helping of people who get to have their lives change and improve drastically through the care and therapy given by the professionals. Through this, apart from their lives taking a positive change, they can meet certain goals and objectives they had set in their lives.
In addition to the experience which I got from my relative, which I can call very little when compared to the real thing, my interest in occupational therapy was confirmed by a summer job that I took where I was able to see and even shadow some individuals working as army occupational therapists. In this summer job, I was able to gain some understanding and insight into the different activities that the therapists do daily. Among the insights include; I have visited group meetings whereby some individuals have numerous scars of war which can include anything from losing an eye to a leg. On another occasion, I was able to visit people inwards and rooms who had severe PTSD and others who had coordination disorders from nerve injuries and the likes. To add to this, at length I have been in discussions with my team members during the summer job as to how occupational therapists can make use of the various exercises, the knowledge gained either through studying or life skills to assist soldiers to recuperate and as such be able to lead normal lives. Not forgetting, I have been fortunate to land on a volunteering position in a hospital, whereby I will get to deal with people who have succumbed to paralyzation because of strokes and other heart-related problems. Therefore, I hope that this volunteering position will equip me with the skills, experience, and knowledge required for one to do an occupational therapy job within a hospital environment.
Apart from the army people and the individuals in the ward, I have been fortunate enough through the connections from my parents who happen to be oncologists to land the opportunity of working with the elderly people. I pulled this off by working as an assistant manager on an internship basis. My work was majorly ensuring that everything within the nursing home is operating smoothly. The nursing home provided a space for the elderly people, who most were suffering from mental problems to heal and find themselves whenever it was possible. In my capacity, I was able to learn the workings of activity groups within the nursing home and the equipment needed to care for each patient depending on the mental problem that they were presenting. In a nutshell, it has been a dream come true for the past one year, as I have also built relationships in the community together with mastering the needed communication skills needed to communicate with the older people, most importantly with people having severe dementia as they happen to be the most. Even though the process has presented some challenges, it is safe to say that every good thing does not come easy, and gaining experience related to occupational therapy is not any different.
Apart from the nursing home, my communication skills have developed due to my volunteering in a special school that tends to house individuals under the age of 10 that have problems with communication and the outside environment to be specific. Some of the students in the special school have autism and it is upon me every week to read for them for about an hour or two. Through this, I get to gain the trust and confidence of the students and eventually can assist them in their most difficult moments. Through this, they are at least to be more comfortable engaging with others than before. In this light, therefore, I would love the opportunity of working with children and young people in general in my working days in the future.
As much as experience is a crucial factor in any working environment, studies – knowledge acquired in class- are also vital to the core. As such, my A levels studies in Biology, Sociology, and Psychology have been a big boost. For instance, I have been able to psychologically and physically understand people. As so, sitting back and watching people interact with each other in a vast society and being able to analyze and learn from their experiences is a breathtaking site. Apart from this, not forgetting chemistry, which has been a fundamental subject in school, but challenging, has been able to help me understand the numerous associations of people and nature and people and people.
The community has played a key role in my love for career-occupational therapy. As a way of giving back to the community, I have participated in schemes and other projects apart from the volunteering works that I have mentioned above. In doing so, I have been able to acquire the attributes of commitment and independence which are very much required in the career path that I have chosen.
I am waiting to conquer the challenges in University together with meeting people of substance who can play a crucial role in me learning the needed skills and acquiring the grades for me to venture into an incredible and worthy career in occupational therapy.