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Board debates whether OTs are 'first responders' and directs ad hoc committee to continue work, schedules April meeting
Summary
The California Board of Occupational Therapy on March 6 directed its ad hoc Disaster Preparedness and Response Committee to reconvene April 16 to refine a practitioner survey and study whether occupational therapy should be treated as a first‑responder function or as disaster‑response support.
The California Board of Occupational Therapy discussed its ad hoc Disaster Preparedness and Response Committee during its March 6 meeting, directing the group to keep working on definitions and outreach and scheduling a follow-up meeting for April 16 at 9 a.m., to be held online. The board heard input from committee members, an academic expert and public commenters about whether occupational therapists (OTs) should be treated as first responders or as disaster-response support personnel.
Board President Beata Morcos opened the item by summarizing recent committee activity and the board’s intention to vet a draft survey of practitioners’ disaster roles. Richard Bookwalter, ad hoc committee chair, said the committee gathered 182 survey responses, reviewed definitions for “first responder” across agencies and invited external…
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