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Recreational therapy assistants support recreational therapists in treating patients by implementing activities to improve physical, mental, and emotional well-being. They cannot provide therapy directly but can help plan and coordinate activities. A high school diploma and post-secondary training are required, and experience as an assistant can lead to advancement as a therapist.
A recreational therapy assistant is a skilled professional who works to support or assist a recreational therapist’s efforts to treat patients. People in this position work to improve the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of others in a variety of settings that may include hospitals, assisted living facilities, mental institutions, and juvenile detention centers. They do this by implementing activities designed to develop a person’s interest and skills in things like board games, sports, music, hobbies, crafts, dancing, or other activities based on the individual’s abilities and desires. This type of therapy is usually designed to help rehabilitate people mentally, physically, or both. Assistants are usually working in a support capacity; depending on the setup, they can help come up with plans, help organize supplies, or coordinate the efforts of larger groups. In most places, they cannot actually provide the therapy directly, although experience as an assistant is often helpful when looking to become a full-fledged therapist.
The Basics of Recreational Therapy
Most health and wellness experts agree that recreation is important to a balanced life, and the discipline of therapeutic recreation builds on this idea to use various forms of leisure activity, hobbies, and sports to help facilitate healing. The field can be broad, and therapists often focus on specific niches. Some work with children who have suffered intense trauma, for example, while others work with young offenders or adult convicts who have withdrawn from normal society for some time; even more work with elderly or infirm.
Common tasks and duties
In general, an assistant is a person who helps a licensed therapist perform therapy. Typically, he or she is not able to implement the therapy directly, as this often requires a license, but there is often a lot to be done when it comes to planning and background research. The assistant can talk to the patient and his or her family or support network, for example, and can spend time finding out about the patient’s particular interests. From there, the assistant can help design an agenda and propose possible therapeutic activities. The assistant can also monitor the success of the chosen activity and can help both the patient and the primary therapist to set reasonable and achievable goals.
A lot can also depend on the configuration. A recreational therapy assistant employed by an assisted living facility can help residents prepare breakfast, take a field trip to a nearby shopping center, or provide transportation to church services. He or she may also lead general group activities or organize trivia games. Its main objective is usually to facilitate activities and events that help patients and clients to maintain physical and mental activities and attention that allow them greater pleasure in life.
educational requirements
In the United States and Canada, a high school diploma is required to become a recreational therapy assistant. Most states also require secondary training, such as an associate’s or bachelor’s degree, from an accredited college or university, in addition to state-mandated professional testing. In Canada, post-secondary training at public universities can lead to a therapy assistant degree. In Europe and Asia, similar post-secondary training programs prepare candidates to work in this job.
There are also some essential skills that are generally advantageous. Basic knowledge of the human body and its associated movement mechanics, as well as knowledge of human growth and development, are often really helpful, if not entirely necessary. Other necessary skills include the ability to observe and report on patient behavior as it relates to participation in prescribed care, and the ability to foster positive relationships with patients and their families.
Possibility of advancement
Many recreational therapists start their careers working as assistants first, and there are often many potential advancements in the field. More often than not, people need to complete specific recreational therapy courses and sometimes even pass licensing exams to become certified therapeutic providers. This tends to depend on the jurisdiction. Experience as an assistant usually doesn’t negate this type of requirement, but it often makes taking necessary courses easier, and it’s often much easier to find a job with simpler work as an assistant on a resume too.
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