Ethics for Occupational Therapists

Course overview

Ethics for Occupational Therapists is a text-based, 3-hour online continuing education (CE/CEU) course that teaches OTs how to address ethical and moral dilemmas in practice. Ethical and moral issues pervade our lives and healthcare professionals are constantly confronted with a variety of ethical and moral dilemmas. Decisions can have long-range effects professionally and personally, not only for the healthcare professional, but for patients, clients, healthcare entities, and society. Why does one decision win out over another? What constitutes the decision-making process? How do decisions impact those involved? Occupational therapists are engaged in an "ethic of care," where activities of daily living are not just a function, but also an expression of values. Helping people maintain their maximum possible functioning is seen in relation to society and the common good of all persons (Taylor,2015). This is an abstract ideal that must be put into practice in an imperfect world. How does the occupational therapist make decisions about what is best for the person when there are difficult choices to make? This course will discuss the common moral and ethical dilemmas that occupational therapists face. The course is based on the 2020 Code of Ethics of the American Occupational Therapy Association and research that offers evidence-based practice strategies. Note that the field of ethics changes over time. The AOTA states that the Code of Ethics is "designed to reflect the dynamic nature of the occupation therapy profession, the evolving health care environment, and emerging technologies that can present potential ethical concerns in practice, research, education and policy" (AOTA 2020). This course is updated every few years, but there will always be new information that affects the ethical practice of occupational therapy, and this must be considered during the decision-making process. Course #31-44 | 2022 | 56 pages | 20 posttest questions