Action | Licensure of occupational therapy assistants |
Stage | Proposed |
Comment Period | Ended on 8/7/2009 |
As an experienced COTA working in the public schools I was very excited to hear that Virginia has agreed to license OTA's. However, I am concerned that we are taking one step forward and two steps backwards with the wording of the proposed 18VAC85-80-110 Section D. It reads:The occupational therapy assistant shall document in the patient record any aspects of the initial evaluation, treatment plan, discharge summary, or other notes on patient care performed by the assistant, and the supervising occupational therapist shall review and countersign within 10 days of such information being recorded. The phase "or other notes on patient care performed by the assistant" would include daily notes performed by the OTA. This is more restrictive then it was before the licensure as the new proposal states the supervising OTR would need to sign within 10 days. Since supervison is occuring once every 10th visit or every 30 days all notes should be signed then. Daily notes should be separated from the other areas listed on the proposal. OTA's are valuable to the practice of Occupational Therapy, and this proposal could jeapordize their jobs. Please consider rewording this proposal.