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Occupational Therapy Testimonials
from Student Interns and Residents
“Being an occupational therapy intern at
Freedom House was extremely rewarding and provided the opportunity to
work with residents of all backgrounds, ages, and abilities. Each
resident’s needs and goals were entirely unique and posed a challenge
for me to be very creative and resourceful in all of my treatment
plans. OT interventions included helping a resident acquire the
necessary skills to open her first checking account, adapting a Freedom
House apartment kitchen so that a resident with physical limitations
could safely and independently perform cooking tasks, assisting a young
parent in childproofing her apartment, recommending a mattress pad to
help relieve an individual’s chronic back pain, organizing several
summer camp scholarships so that four young residents were able to
experience supportive peer and caregiver relationships as well as
pursue new leisure activities such as rock climbing, dance, music, and
gymnastics, educating a young teenager on anger management strategies
to better cope with his experienced trauma and to better interact with
his younger siblings, and ordering keyboard trays for the Freedom House
computer lab to make it as ergonomically sound as possible. My
experiences with one particular seven year old resident resonate in my
memory. This boy is diagnosed with spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy,
profound mental retardation, and is legally blind. He entered the
shelter with his mother and younger sister. As most residents must do,
this family severed employment, school, and social ties to seek safety
at Freedom House. The boy was quickly placed in a new school for
children with special needs but he was unable to receive OT, PT, and
speech therapy services as every school therapist’s case load was full.
Freedom House was able to provide intermediary OT services for this
resident so that he would not lose skills that he had attained with his
previous therapists. Not only did the boy not regress, but he made
great gains during his stay at Freedom House. Within the eight weeks
that he was receiving services at the shelter, the resident moved from
being unable to sit unsupported and engage in bimanual play to being
able to assume a biomechanically sound sitting posture on a mat,
enabling him to hold his favorite ball for the first time while outside
of his adaptive stroller. His mother expressed great excitement with
her child’s progress, and was in turn able to more fully participate in
the adult program at Freedom House.”
Andrea Johnston, Freedom House OT Intern, New York University 2006
“The concept of people with disabilities living within the community
remained just that a concept until my affiliation at BFL. During my
stay I was able to see the residents with various degrees of
disabilities lead their lives as independently as possible. Some of
them even went on trips, which most people would be surprise to find
out. Although I am educated enough not to be prejudice or have
preconceived notions about people with disabilities, I was at awe as to
how much the residents of BFL were able to do for themselves given the
appropriate assistance. I thank all the workers and residents for
further confirming my convictions of becoming an occupational
therapist. Thank you all for the knowledge I’ve gained, thanks for the
time given and most of all for the welcoming hearts. My time with all
of you has been tremendously pleasant and will forever be remembered
and treasured.”
Janizh Dionisio- Transitional Housing OT Intern, Chicago State University 2006
OT Testimonials from residents
“I have found OT to be challenging and inspiring. Challenging because
they challenged me to come out of my shell, to be creative in more
areas than one. They inspired me to take a deeper look at myself and
be all that I can be now and in the future.” D.M.--- BFL resident
“Daily group exercises; computer literacy sessions; a trip to the MOMA;
creative writing classes, where you not only have fun, but resurrect
the creativity that sometimes lay dormant within. Relaxation and
exhilarating moments at the swimming pool; kitchen mechanics leading to
a certificate in cooking; manicuring tips; current event discussions;
BINGO! I am not bored. The OT department has certainly fertilized the
Barrier Free Living soil, enabling us (the clients) to blossom, fully
equipped with essential socially interactive skills-a quality of life
adjustment necessary for taking that giant step toward independent
living.” M.H.--- BFL resident
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