Industrial Therapist

An Industrial Therapist takes the starring role in training and preparing those with mental or physical handicaps to enter the workplace again. It is important for a handicapped person to become self-reliant and to increase their independence despite the mental or physical obstacles. This boosts their self-confidence, speeds up recovery, and leads to a healthier lifestyle. As an Industrial Therapist, you promote this growth by finding employment opportunities for them both in and out of the treatment facility or hospital, and carefully monitoring their progress.

Each day in an Industrial Therapist job finds you working one-on-one with patients at a hospital or other treatment center. You start by reviewing paperwork to see how each patient is progressing, then brainstorming ideas to help promote recovery.

Throughout the day, you meet with patients individually to discuss their progress. You design job training and rehabilitation exercises that meet their needs, and other staff members that you’ve trained lead the patients through these. During your sessions, you’ll see how the patient feels about their progress, and perform career assessments to identify what jobs might match their particular interests and skill set.

Once the busy part of the day is underway, you attend meetings with other staff members and plan out programs for each person at your treatment center. One person may start off with a job inside the hospital while another may need to find outside work to support themselves.

Regardless of where they work, your main goal is to ensure the person is functioning as a happy and productive individual member of society.