Experiences as a Locum OT in Gerontology Setting from Autistic Individual Perspective

With prevalence rate of autism on the rise to 1 in 68 from the CDC in 2013, it implies that there are a lot more autistic adults in the present and future in communities across the world. According to autobiographies written... [ view full abstract ]

With prevalence rate of autism on the rise to 1 in 68 from the CDC in 2013, it implies that there are a lot more autistic adults in the present and future in communities across the world. According to autobiographies written by autistic individuals (Birch, 2003; Holliday Willey, 1999; Robinson, 2007) and research (Baldwin et. al, 2014; Wilczynski et. al, 2013), autistic individuals face significant disadvantages in the workplace and many of them require additional support to reduce such gaps. Such disadvantages include social communication skills with co-workers and other individuals in their work environments, sensory modulation, and dealing with sudden and unpredictable changes (Birch, 2003; Willey, 1999; Robinson 2007). The author has met with autistic occupational therapy students and practitioners online and offline in the occupational therapy profession since he was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome in 2010 as an occupational therapy student in the United States. The author is now working 35 to 45 hours a week as a locum occupational therapist at convalescent homes across Los Angeles County and Orange County in state of California of the United States. This presentation will highlight his challenges as an autistic occupational therapist in his current job through task analysis, strategies to seek support, and what he has learned from his ongoing journey as an occupational therapy clinician and leader. The information from this presentation can be useful for the occupational therapy profession to provide service improvement through better and timely support to our autistic colleagues throughout their careers.