Student Blog

OTAC Conference 2014 ⟩
November 10, 2014, by Leila

Getting Involved Videos

I have been so caught up with school work that I almost forgot to blog about OTAC! Nearly two weeks ago I was able to attend The Occupational Therapy Association of California Annual Conference. I knew this would be a great learning and networking opportunity. I attended the student track both Friday and Saturday, and was able to attend two other sessions of my choice on Sunday. Not only did I enjoy all of the sessions, it was a great opportunity for me to mingle with fellow OTs, as well as OT students from other programs.

Some of the student track sessions consisted of topics covering stress management, traumatic brain injury, autism spectrum disorder, mental health within a pediatric setting and making a fine motor tool kit! Did I mention free stuff? You also have the opportunity to meet potential employers, awesome OT related organizations, check out companies with innovative products and receive tons of free stuff like swag bags, pens, earbuds, etc. It was pretty awesome to say the least! I would definitely recommend attending (or volunteering) regardless if you are in OT school or not.

Fortunately, I was able to capture some of the awesomeness on camera!

Be sure to check out our division Instagram @uscchanosot and the Occupational Therapy Student Council instagram @otsctrojans for photos from the conference and future events!

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Electives ⟩
November 7, 2014, by Kristy

Classes What are OS/OT?

One of the many unique opportunities you have here at USC, is the chance to take elective courses during the spring of your 2nd year. This is the time where you can gain additional education on certain topics you are interested in, explore new interests, or build upon knowledge already gained in the program. Even though when we complete the program we are considered “generalist” OTs, you can “specialize” your electives. For example, if you are interested in Pediatrics, perhaps you will take a course in Early Intervention, School-Based Practice, and Sensory Integration Theory. Or if your focus intends to be Adult Rehabilitation, you may take Enhancing Motor Control for Occupation, Hand Rehabilitation, and Occupational Therapy in Acute Care. If Mental Health and Wellness is your niche you could focus on Lifestyle Redesign and Therapeutic Communication for the Healthcare Practitioner! There are so many combinations of courses you can take! And if you are someone who is interested in all of the above, that’s fine too! You can take any of the above and more! It is a great opportunity to continue to explore the field of occupational therapy and all it has to offer.

For myself personally, I hope to go into school-based pediatrics, therefore I am taking School-Based Practice, Sensory Integration Theory and Sensory Integration Interventions. The latter two classes fulfill part of the requirements for the Sensory Integration Certification Program. Through the certification program, I will gain knowledge in the foundations of sensory integration, education on administering the Sensory Integration and Praxis Test (SIPT) and interpreting the results as well as ideas for intervention to implement sensory strategies. I am really excited to start my electives in January and feel lucky that I have the opportunity to further explore my interests in pediatrics!

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Gardening as an occupation ⟩
November 3, 2014, by Claire

What are OS/OT?

One of the goodies that I picked up from OTAC a couple weeks ago was a little plant set with forget-me-not seeds! While taking a break from studying, I decided to plant it and see what happens! Given my lack of experience with gardening, I consider this pretty adventurous of myself! I called my grandpa who lives back at home to tell him that I planted some seeds, because his favorite occupation is gardening. It was super fun to bond with my grandpa and share in this occupation which is so meaningful to him. He has been gardening for over twenty years now and he often complains about the squirrels and birds eating the fruit from his trees.

He told me to be patient with plants (I was saying that I wanted the seeds to sprout already), and that you plant the seeds with hope and feel a lot of joy when you see them grow. A couple days later, some sprouts came out, and I was surprised by how happy I felt seeing them!

Caring for a small plant can be a really good activity. I interned at the occupational therapy department of a Taiwanese mental health hospital a couple years ago, and planting seeds was an activity that we did with the patients in the acute ward. It was so inspiring to see the patients reflect on times when they had gardened in the past or relate to times when they had to patiently wait for something; every member planted some seeds and they all left the session with their individual potted plant. I thought it was a great way to engage these patients in a healthy occupation and give them a sense of responsibility and control over something.

Have any of you tried out any new occupations recently? Or, what are some occupations that your loved ones like to do, and have you ever had a chance to share in that experience?

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Transportation In LA ⟩
November 1, 2014, by Bindi

Housing and Transportation Living in LA

Deciding where to live can be a confusing task, specifically when you’re new to USC and LA. The most important thing to take into account is transport and accessibility. Here are a few things to consider if you will be living at the OT House.

1. USC has 2 campuses. Health Sciences Campus (HSC) and University Park Campus (UPC).  For masters’ students all the classes except for field work and some elective courses will be held at HSC.
2. OT house — Centennial Apartments is located on UPC.
3. Students who don’t have a car in LA shouldn’t feel homebound because they don’t have a car. Make use of the free transport services available.
4. The USC transport not only provides transport from residential areas around the campus to the campus but also inter campus (i.e., from UPC to HSC) with a stop at Union Station.
5. They also have special services like the shuttles that go to LA Live every Friday and Saturday, and recently started an intercampus tram on the weekends as well.
6. Campus cruisers — this is a free car service. If you are one of the many individuals who work, study or take classes at night, you don’t have to walk to your car or home alone. The USC Campus Cruiser Service offers either a walking or vehicle escort to your destination.
7. Download the USC transportation app for cell phones. This allows you to track buses and cruisers in live time. It can save you a lot of time.
8. There are many events hosted by the division and university. Do not hesitate to attend them because you don’t have a ride to the event. In my experience I have found everyone understands how difficult it is to get around LA without a car — so just ask people if you can carpool with them. Most will be more than happy to help.

This is LA, ensure your safety by maximizing use of the safe and free transport that USC offers!!

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#otacconf2014 ⟩
October 26, 2014, by Kristy

Community Getting Involved What are OS/OT?

Last weekend I was lucky enough to attend The Occupational Therapy Association of California (OTAC) Annual Conference. It was my first OT Conference and I had a blast! I participated in the student track, which I really enjoyed because we had a variety of sessions throughout the days, some focusing on stress management, traumatic brain injury, autism spectrum disorder, and fine motor tools.

Since I want to go into school-based pediatrics, there were several sessions that I thoroughly enjoyed! The presenters had a lot of great ideas for tools and activities to do with children. One of the sessions was about putting the “Fun” in “Functional,” insert Therapy Fun Zone!!! They showed us many different activities we could work on to target sensory systems, hand strength, grasp, and visual skills. Another interactive session that focused on fun tools for kids was by Mama OT. What was great about this session, is she provided us with a lot of home items into creative items. The creator of Mama OT was an USC Occupational Therapy Graduate who saw the overlap of being a new mom and a new occupational therapist and wanted to share with others! One thing I love about the field of occupational therapy is that people are always willing to help others do better in their career. It’s great to follow blogs, facebook, or Pinterest boards to see what other occupational therapist are up to. Can you guess what we did with the items below?

Other great aspects of the OTAC conference included the social and mingling aspects. There were evening gatherings as well as exhibit halls that allowed us to interact with other occupational therapists and occupational therapy students. I personally enjoyed chatting with other OT students and comparing/contrasting what we were currently learning in class. And did I mention all the free stuff we got??? Pens, reusable bags, pencil grips, tools, etc., which all can be used to promote occupational therapy! Lastly, I can’t believe I almost forgot — to check out all the awesome pictures from the weekend, search #otacconf2014 on instagram. OTs use a lot of social media, and they had a competition using the hashtag. Overall, I really enjoyed the conference and see the benefit not only educationally, but personally as well. It excites me even more about becoming an occupational therapist and being out in the field soon!

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