Recreational Therapists

Plan, direct, or coordinate medically-approved recreation programs for patients in hospitals, nursing homes, or other institutions. Activities include sports, trips, dramatics, social activities, and arts and crafts. May assess a patient condition and recommend appropriate recreational activity.

tasks jobzones knowledge skills abilities work_activities work_context interests work_styles work_values

Tasks

• Prepare and submit reports and charts to treatment team to reflect patients' reactions and evidence of progress or regression.

• Plan, organize, direct and participate in treatment programs and activities to facilitate patients' rehabilitation, help them integrate into the community and prevent further medical problems.

• Obtain information from medical records, medical staff, family members and the patients themselves to assess patients' capabilities, needs and interests.

• Instruct patient in activities and techniques, such as sports, dance, music, art or relaxation techniques, designed to meet their specific physical or psychological needs.

• Conduct therapy sessions to improve patients' mental and physical well-being.

• Confer with members of treatment team to plan and evaluate therapy programs.

• Counsel and encourage patients to develop leisure activities.

• Encourage clients with special needs and circumstances to acquire new skills and get involved in health-promoting leisure activities, such as sports, games, arts and crafts, and gardening.

• Develop treatment plan to meet needs of patient, based on needs assessment, patient interests and objectives of therapy.

• Observe, analyze, and record patients' participation, reactions, and progress during treatment sessions, modifying treatment programs as needed.

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Job Zone

• Name: Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed

• Experience: A minimum of two to four years of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.

• Education: Most of these occupations require a four - year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

• Job training: Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.

• Examples: Many of these occupations involve coordinating, supervising, managing, or training others. Examples include accountants, human resource managers, computer programmers, teachers, chemists, and police detectives.

• Svp range: (7.0 to < 8.0)

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Knowledge

Browse Knowledge

• Psychology
  Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.

• Customer and Personal Service
  Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

• Therapy and Counseling
  Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.

• Sociology and Anthropology
  Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.

• Philosophy and Theology
  Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.

• Education and Training
  Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

• Fine Arts
  Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.

• English Language
  Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

• Geography
  Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.

• Public Safety and Security
  Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

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Skills

Browse Skills

• Social Perceptiveness
  Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

• Writing
  Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

• Active Listening
  Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

• Instructing
  Teaching others how to do something.

• Learning Strategies
  Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.

• Coordination
  Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.

• Reading Comprehension
  Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

• Speaking
  Talking to others to convey information effectively.

• Persuasion
  Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.

• Service Orientation
  Actively looking for ways to help people.

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Abilities

Browse Abilities

• Oral Expression
  The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

• Problem Sensitivity
  The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.

• Written Expression
  The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

• Originality
  The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.

• Deductive Reasoning
  The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

• Oral Comprehension
  The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

• Inductive Reasoning
  The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).

• Information Ordering
  The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).

• Written Comprehension
  The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.

• Speech Recognition
  The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.

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Work Activities

Browse Work Activities

• Monitor Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
  Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.

• Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work
  Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.

• Assisting and Caring for Others
  Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.

• Thinking Creatively
  Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.

• Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships
  Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.

• Getting Information
  Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.

• Making Decisions and Solving Problems
  Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.

• Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
  Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.

• Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
  Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.

• Scheduling Work and Activities
  Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.

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Work Context

• Face-to-Face Discussions
  How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job?

• Work With Work Group or Team
  How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job?

• Contact With Others
  How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it?

• Physical Proximity
  To what extent does this job require the worker to perform job tasks in close physical proximity to other people?

• Deal With Physically Aggressive People
  How frequently does this job require the worker to deal with physical aggression of violent individuals?

• Structured versus Unstructured Work
  To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals?

• Freedom to Make Decisions
  How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer?

• Telephone
  How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?

• Exposed to Disease or Infections
  How often does this job require exposure to disease/infections?

• Time Pressure
  How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines?

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Interests

Browse Interests

• Social
  Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.

• Artistic
  Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules.

• Realistic
  Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

• Investigative
  Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.

• Enterprising
  Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.

• Conventional
  Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.

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Work Styles

• Concern for Others
  Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.

• Self Control
  Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.

• Cooperation
  Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.

• Integrity
  Job requires being honest and ethical.

• Adaptability/Flexibility
  Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.

• Dependability
  Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.

• Social Orientation
  Job requires preferring to work with others rather than alone, and being personally connected with others on the job.

• Innovation
  Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems.

• Stress Tolerance
  Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations.

• Leadership
  Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.

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Work Values

Browse Work Values

• Social Service
  Workers on this job have work where they do things for other people.

• Achievement
  Workers on this job get a feeling of accomplishment.

• Co-workers
  Workers on this job have co-workers who are easy to get along with.

• Relationships-Mean Extent
  Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service.

• Achievement-Mean Extent
  Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.

• Ability Utilization
  Workers on this job make use of their individual abilities.

• Creativity
  Workers on this job try out their own ideas.

• Social Status
  Workers on this job are looked up to by others in their company and their community.

• Independence-Mean Extent
  Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employs to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.

• Security
  Workers on this job have steady employment.

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