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Illinois Occupational Therapy Assistants

Which services are OTAs allowed to practice?

N/A

Are there specific services that OTAs are prohibited from practicing?

N/A

What are the responsibilities of the OT when delegating to a OTA?

Supervision is a process in which 2 or more persons participate in a joint effort to establish, maintain and elevate a level of performance and shall include the following criteria:

    • To maintain high standards of practice based on professional principles, supervision shall connote the physical presence of the supervisors and the assistant at regularly scheduled supervision sessions.
    • Supervision shall be provided in varying patterns as determined by the demands of the areas of patient/client service and the competency of the individual assistant.  Such supervision shall be structured according to the assistant's qualifications, position, level of preparation, depth of experience and the environment within which he/she functions.
    • The supervisors shall be responsible for the standard of work performed by the assistant and shall have knowledge of the patients/clients and the problems being discussed.  Co-signature does not reflect supervision.

What type of supervision is required?

OTAs with less than one (1) year of work experience

The OTA who has less than one year of work experience or who is entering new practice environments or developing new skills shall receive a minimum of 5% on-site face‑to-face supervision from a registered OT per month.  On-site supervision consists of direct, face-to-face collaboration in which the supervisor must be on the premises.  The remaining work hours shall be supervised by a combination of telephone, electronic communication, telecommunication, technology or face-to-face consultation.

OTAs with more than one (1) year of work experience

The OTA with more than one year of experience in his/her current practice shall have a minimum of 5% direct supervision from a registered OT per month.  The 5% direct supervision shall consist of 2% direct, face-to-face collaboration.  The remaining 3% of supervision shall be a combination of telephone, electronic communication, telecommunication technology or face-to-face consultation.

Documentation of supervision

It is the responsibility of the OTA to maintain on file at the job site signed documentation reflecting supervision activities.  This supervision documentation shall contain the following: 

    • Date of supervision,
    • Means of communication,
    • Information discussed and
    • The outcomes of the interaction. 

Does the supervising OT need to co-sign documentation created by the OTA?

Both the supervising OT and the OTA must sign each entry.

What is the ratio between supervising OTs and OTAs?

N/A

Required designation for assistants

Any person who is issued a license as an occupational therapy assistant under the terms of this Act may use the words, "occupational therapy assistant" or "licensed occupational therapy assistant", or he or she may use the letters "O.T.A.", "OTA/L", or "COTA/L" in connection with his or her name or place of business to denote his or her licensure

Reference

225 ILCS 75/2

225 ILCS 75/15

69 Ill. Admin. Code 1315.163


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