What skills do you feel are most important for occupational therapists to possess?
Occupational therapists must possess many technical, interpersonal, and soft skills to be effective and successful in any healthcare setting within the NHS. Review the job description and note keywords like "compassionate, able to work independently and as part of a team, collaborative, etc., to give you an idea of the specific skills the interviewer is looking for. In your response, provide a mix of the value you bring to the team through your technical skills, personality, experiences, and soft skills.
"I feel that to be effective in your role as an OT and to build relationships with patients and their caregivers, you much be genuinely kind, caring, and compassionate. You must be able to communicate with your patients constructively by actively listening and speaking in a calm, professional, and patient tone. As an occupational therapist, you must be able to work well within a healthcare team to problem-solve and share information that benefits the patient and improves their outcomes. Lastly, it's important that you possess the ability to motivate and encourage patients, as many may be struggling emotionally, especially if they have a new diagnosis or have suffered a setback. Each day that you work with them, you must be able to have a coaching mindset and encourage them to give their best effort."
"Occupational therapists must be very patient. We work with many patients, all suffering from various physical, mental, or emotional illnesses or diseases. Naturally, they have a range of emotions from frustrated, depressed, irritated, sad, anxious, or excited, so there is no cookie-cutter way to treat or work with a patient. Each individual patient requires a unique and tailored approach. Another skill OTs must possess is creativity. Again, not every approach works for every patient, so you have to be creative in your methods and approach. Sometimes a sense of humor is helpful, and other times a high-energy approach is motivating. When working with children, they tend to get bored easily, so you have to find ways to make everyday tasks fun so that they are engaged and cooperative."
