Recreational Therapists
O*NET files this work under Recreational Therapists: people who plan, direct, or coordinate medically-approved recreation programs for patients in hospitals, nursing homes, or other institutions. The skills rated most useful are service orientation, speaking, and social perceptiveness. Expect to instruct patient in activities and techniques, such as sports, dance, music, art, or relaxation techniques, designed to meet their specific physical or psychological needs. On the six-type interest model it reads SIR, meaning helping, teaching or caring for people comes first, followed by research, analysis and working through hard problems. Getting in usually takes a bachelor’s degree plus a period of work experience, a level O*NET calls considerable preparation. People who want helping, teaching or caring for people usually fit better here than those who need leading, persuading and making business decisions.
What they do
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 crafts. May assess a patient condition and recommend appropriate recreational activity.
Main tasks
- 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.
- 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.
- Observe, analyze, and record patients' participation, reactions, and progress during treatment sessions, modifying treatment programs as needed.
- Develop treatment plan to meet needs of patient, based on needs assessment, patient interests, and objectives of therapy.
- Obtain information from medical records, medical staff, family members and the patients, themselves, to assess patients' capabilities, needs and interests.
Skills
- Service Orientation
- Speaking
- Social Perceptiveness
- Coordination
- Active Listening
- Writing
Who this career fits
May suit you if
- You get energy from helping other people move forward.
- You enjoy working out why something happens, not just what happened.
- You are ready to spend around four years on a degree, then build experience.
- You are comfortable relying on service orientation and speaking.
May not suit you if
- You find a full day of dealing with people draining.
- You want to avoid a four-year degree or its equivalent.
Interest profile
O*NET rates each occupation from 1 to 7 on six interest types. The code SIR takes the three highest, and Social comes first here.
Preparation
Considerable preparation. Most jobs here ask for a bachelor’s degree, and employers usually expect a few years of related experience as well.
Most-reported requirement in the O*NET survey: Bachelor's Degree. This reflects what workers reported most often and is not a legal minimum. Licensing rules can differ by state or industry, so confirm what applies where you plan to work.
Also called
- Activities Coordinator
- Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist (CTRS)
- General Activities Therapist
- Recreation Therapist
- Recreational Therapist
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This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 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.