A Career Helping Children: Pediatric Therapy
Maybe you have already narrowed your path down to a specific
dream job. Maybe you’re still unsure what you’d like to pursue a career in.
There are so many different directions a high school grad can go in. With the
world at your fingertips and so many opportunities available to you, it can be
a be a daunting task to choose what you’d like to do for the rest of your life,
especially at just 18 years old.
Our best recommendation is to figure out what makes you
happy and what you’d like to ‘take away’ from your work. Many people really
want to spend their life’s work helping others overcome difficulties.
Therapy is just one way to help others improve their lives.
One of the most critical times in a person’s life is between the ages 0 and 5.
That is why pediatric therapy is particularly important!
There are many facets of pediatric therapy and all are very
important. Three major types include speech therapy, occupational therapy, and
physical therapy. Here are the differences of each and the benefits of choosing
a career in pediatric therapy!
Pediatric Speech Pathology
A pediatric speech language pathologist works with children to
help them improve their oral communication and motor skills. Specifically, this
includes learning how to form particular sounds and words, learning how to
properly express themselves, learning how to properly receive information from
others, and how to use their muscles to feed, chew, and swallow. Many people
believe speech therapy is simply for children who have trouble pronouncing
certain letters, like R’s. However, the realm of speech therapy extends from
oral motor to eating, articulation, auditory processing, and social skills.
Pediatric
Occupational Therapy
A pediatric occupational therapist helps children with the performance
of activities required in daily life. Physical and mental impairments include
issues with cognitive skills, fine motor skills, gross motor skills, self-care,
and social skills. For example, if a child has trouble developing their fine
motor skills, a therapist could engage the child with a playdoh rolling and
squeezing activity. This simple task helps improve finger dexterity, which
helps the child better complete daily tasks such as grabbing a toothbrush.
Pediatric Physical
Therapy
A pediatric occupational therapist focuses on improving a
child’s ability to perform activities in daily life. In contract, a pediatric
physical therapist focuses on improving a child’s ability to perform major
movements of their body. In other words, an OT focuses on defined and specific
movements, such as putting on shoes, while a PT focuses on broad movements of
the body, such as walking and running.
Why Pursue a Career
in Pediatric PT OT SLP therapy
Although these three positions are very different, they all work
with children who have developmental delays. Therefore they are all extremely
important to a child’s development and the success of meeting major milestones.
In addition, there is also a lot of opportunity for people who work in the field of therapy. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, speech language pathology is growing at 18%, occupational therapy is growing at 24%, and physical therapy is growing at 28%. All much faster than average!
Furthermore, all three offer a very comfortable salary that is much higher than the national average.
Last, but most certainly not least, a
career in pediatric therapy is extremely rewarding! The feeling many therapists
get when they help a child reach a goal, is very rewarding. In fact, because of
the hard work of therapists, when a child overcomes a major setback, the people
around them become very proud of both the child and the therapist. Here is a
quote from Kristin B., a Little Lukes teacher who works around therapists every
day.
"My
favorite memory in the seven years that I have been at Little Lukes was from a
graduation a few years ago. We had a student in our class who was blind, and
was unable to walk on her own when she started school. By the time graduation
came she had mastered walking and was able to cross the “stage” on her own.
Moments like that are the reason that we do what we do!"
This
child’s success is the direct result of not only her teachers, but also her
therapists, all working together to improve this child’s life. That is the
beauty of pursuing a job that has so much to give, you get the privilege to
watch someone succeed because of your help.
Pediatric
Therapy Jobs in Preschool Setting
Little
Lukes is a leading Syracuse and Oswego County educational preschool and
childcare provider with five inclusive preschool locations. The early education
program includes credentialed and caring staff that specializes in
comprehensive infant, toddler and pre-kindergarten development. Additional
services include pediatric speech therapy, pediatric physical therapy and
pediatric occupational therapy. Preschool locations include Dewitt (East
Syracuse), Baldwinsville (Radisson), Oswego, Fulton, and Pulaski.
Interested in a pediatric speech language pathology, occupational therapy, or physical therapy career with Little Lukes? Please visit our employment page for more information about Little Lukes’ competitive salary and benefits.
Already have your degree? Email your
resume to Darci at apply@littlelukes.com
or call (315) 326-3345.
Looking to gain your degree? For more
information on education opportunities for students pursuing pediatric speech
therapy, occupational therapy, and physical therapy, please visit the following
organizations.
American Occupational Therapy Association