People Team AI Ask about a date

How exposed to AI is a Occupational Therapy Assistant?

Of the 22 tasks O*NET lists for occupational therapy assistants, 3 could be done in half the time with a chat window today. 15 cannot be sped up at all. Here is which.

Exposure means published research judged an AI could halve the time a task takes, at the same quality. It does not mean the task stops needing a person. How to read this

Also called
Acute Care Occupational Therapy Assistant (Acute Care OT Assistant)Certified Occupational AssistantCertified Occupational Therapist Assistant (COTA)Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant (COTA)Licensed Occupational Therapist Assistant (LOTA)Licensed Occupational Therapy Assistant (LOTA)Occupational Therapist Assistant (OTA)Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA)Registered Therapist AssistantSchool Based Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant (School Based COTA)
Reachable today Needs software built first Cannot be sped up
22
tasks rated for this occupation
3%
hold a degree, from a survey of only 17
42k
people do this job in the US
3 of 19
least protected in healthcare support

Every task, and what AI can do with it

These are O*NET's task statements for this occupation, exactly as written, sorted into the three bands by the ratings behind this report. Nothing has been reworded.

Reachable with a chat window today

3
  • Select therapy activities to fit patients' needs and capabilities
  • Alter treatment programs to obtain better results if treatment is not having the intended effect
  • Perform clerical duties, such as scheduling appointments, collecting data, or documenting health insurance billings

Only with software built on top

4
  • Report to supervisors, verbally or in writing, on patients' progress, attitudes, and behavior
  • Observe and record patients' progress, attitudes, and behavior and maintain this information in client records
  • Communicate and collaborate with other healthcare professionals involved with the care of a patient
  • Attend care plan meetings to review patient progress and update care plans

Cannot be sped up

15
  • Instruct, or assist in instructing, patients and families in home programs, basic living skills, or the care and use of adaptive equipment
  • Maintain and promote a positive attitude toward clients and their treatment programs
  • Implement, or assist occupational therapists with implementing, treatment plans designed to help clients function independently
  • Monitor patients' performance in therapy activities, providing encouragement
  • Attend continuing education classes
  • Aid patients in dressing and grooming themselves
  • Evaluate the daily living skills or capacities of physically, developmentally, or emotionally disabled clients
  • Work under the direction of occupational therapists to plan, implement, or administer educational, vocational, or recreational programs that restore or enhance performance in individuals with functional impairments
  • Assemble, clean, or maintain equipment or materials for patient use
  • Transport patients to and from the occupational therapy work area
  • Design, fabricate, or repair assistive devices or make adaptive changes to equipment or environments
  • Demonstrate therapy techniques, such as manual or creative arts or games
  • Teach patients how to deal constructively with their emotions
  • Order any needed educational or treatment supplies
  • Assist educational specialists or clinical psychologists in administering situational or diagnostic tests to measure client's abilities or progress
What this does not say

This is not a prediction about your job

Nobody surveyed an employer. Tasks are counted equally, so a percentage here is a share of the list rather than a share of your week. And the ratings were made in 2023, which makes every figure a floor rather than a ceiling.

It must never be used to select anyone for redundancy. The full limits are here.

Where to go next

This is the standard task list for the title. The useful next question is which of the tasks you actually do should go near AI, and which should not.

Sort your own tasks Read the full report

Exposure ratings from Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin and Rock, GPTs are GPTs: Labor market impact potential of LLMs, Science 384, 1306–1308, 2024, used under the MIT licence. This page includes information from the O*NET Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. People Team AI has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. Employment figures from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.