HCC Community College Medical Terms and Conditions Discussion

You are learning medical terms and conditions that affect the general population. These terms,
conditions, and the functioning of various systems will be important as you practice in the field
of occupational therapy. An important component of being a good therapist is a keen sense of
observation. Complete 2 hours of observation in the community. Some ideas: sit for the time
period in the mall or other open area and observe individuals as they complete their tasks within
the community. Go for a walk in your community and observe individuals during your walk.
Choose public areas such as malls or parks.  To respect the rights and confidentiality of
individuals that you are observing: (1) Please do not record or take pictures of individuals.
(2) Do not stop individuals and ask them questions for the purpose of this assignment. This
is an experience to complete a very general observation and writing your observations is the only
acceptable method of recording what you observe.
Please answer the following questions with what you observe:
? Where did you observe? What times did you observe?
? How are individuals getting around in the community? Do you see anyone with a walker
or wheelchair? Does it take a long period of time for certain individuals to get around in
the area in which you observing? Why do you think it is taking this individual such a
long period of time?
? Do individuals have any other equipment that looks familiar to you? If it does not look
familiar to you, can you describe the equipment and how the individual is using the
equipment in the community?
? Do you see any individuals with physical or medical conditions with which you are
familiar? Can you elaborate on this condition and how you are aware that they may have
this condition?
? What role do you see an occupational therapy professional would play in individuals that
utilize equipment or have disabilities? Complete further research and indicate specifically
the role of the occupational therapy professional with these individuals.