Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 38, September 20, 2024
a) A certified occupational therapy assistant
shall practice only under the supervision of a registered occupational
therapist. Supervision is a process in which 2 or more persons participate in a
joint effort to establish, maintain and elevate a level of performance and
shall include the following criteria:
1) To
maintain high standards of practice based on professional principles,
supervision shall connote the physical presence of the supervisors and the
assistant at regularly scheduled supervision sessions.
2) Supervision shall be provided in varying
patterns as determined by the demands of the areas of patient/client service
and the competency of the individual assistant. Such supervision shall be
structured according to the assistant's qualifications, position, level of
preparation, depth of experience and the environment within which he/she
functions.
3) The supervisors shall
be responsible for the standard of work performed by the assistant and shall
have knowledge of the patients/clients and the problems being discussed.
Co-signature does not reflect supervision.
4) A minimum guideline of formal supervision
is as follows:
A) The occupational therapy
assistant who has less than one year of work experience or who is entering new
practice environments or developing new skills shall receive a minimum of 5%
on-site face-to-face supervision from a registered occupational therapist per
month. On-site supervision consists of direct, face-to-face collaboration in
which the supervisor must be on the premises. The remaining work hours shall be
supervised by a combination of telephone, electronic communication,
telecommunication, technology or face-to-face consultation.
B) The occupational therapy assistant with
more than one year of experience in his/her current practice shall have a
minimum of 5% direct supervision from a registered occupational therapist per
month. The 5% direct supervision shall consist of 2% direct, face-to-face
collaboration. The remaining 3% of supervision shall be a combination of
telephone, electronic communication, telecommunication technology or
face-to-face consultation. The remaining work hours will be supervised in
accordance with subsection (a)(2).
b) Record Keeping. It is the responsibility
of the occupational therapy assistant to maintain on file at the job site
signed documentation reflecting supervision activities. This supervision
documentation shall contain the following: date of supervision, means of
communication, information discussed and the outcomes of the interaction. Both
the supervising occupational therapist and the occupational therapy assistant
must sign each entry.
