It’s early Thursday morning and my desk is a mess. I’d
like to keep it that way ‘til Friday afternoon, or at least, until my
co-workers notice it. I believe that the messier the workspace, the
busier you look! This should be an unwritten rule that every laborer
must learn just to make themselves look good. Not for nothing, but
i can already see that employee of the month plaque in my office
wall. Just like everything else, my job as a rehabilitation director
also comes with its challenges. In a business model, you would
always want to consider the financial aspects of a department.
The eternal battle between discharging a patient vs. maximizing
reimbursement always comes to mind. As an Occupational
Therapist myself, you want to provide a client-centered treatment.
However, reality tells me to also consider the building that you
work for. In other words, your aim is to earn something extra for
the sake of the business that is paying for you and your patient’s
needs. Reimbursement drives care.

There’s always that kid in class who would rather stay
in the library than spend the next 4 vacant hours in the mall. If
that’s you, I suggest you skip to the next article and pass on this
one. I’m not saying there’s something wrong with you, it’s just that
this piece is not the American Journal of Occupational Therapy
type. It’s not you, it’s me. Really! Having practiced Occupational
Therapy in America for 8 years now has been quite an experience.
I started my professional career in a school setting, working with
elementary kids mostly diagnosed with global developmental delay
and behavioral dysfunction. Contrary to my personal expectation,
I enjoyed the pediatric population no matter how unpredictable
and unruly the student i serve get. After 2 years working with
the Dept. of Education in New York, I moved to New Jersey and
started working in a geriatric facility. The last 6 years of my life has
been devoted to skilled nursing facilities. Working with the older
population is somewhat a cocktail of emotions. I say that because
the residents we serve are at a point in their lives when death is
truly inevitable. There’s really no other alternative when you’re
getting old. If you ever end up working in a nursing home, I
strongly advice against getting too attached with a patient. At
the same time, seeing them improve from an illness and achieve
their prior level of function is a gratifying feeling every therapist
longs for. Thus, the cocktail of emotions. Two years ago, I
was hired by my current company to become a rehabilitation
director in one of their facilities. It was probably the scariest
career risk that I ever took. Fast forward to the present, i’m still
here... still in the business of caring for our older fellow men. I
am under this impression that I have done a good job so far. As
of this writing, being that I am not (yet) fired should prove that
point.

As a CDU alumni, I am very proud to share with you
that I am currently working with 3 of my college classmates.
Who would have thought when we started our journey to
become Occupational Therapists in 1996, we would end up
as co-workers 16 years later? Now, we are celebrating each
others life events, spending special occasions, or just merely
hanging out in a country far away from our native land. It is
such a blessing to be working with these guys knowing the
things that we’ve been through to get here. It was a struggle for
the most part, but having friends around really makes things a
little less difficult. Remember what I said about looking good in
front of your co-workers? It’s really not about how messy your
desk is. It’s about how many people can help you clean that
mess. CDU-OT 2001, please stand up!