California OT board debates whether occupational therapists should be classed as "first responders," schedules follow-up and new survey

The California Board of Occupational Therapy spent a large portion of its March 6 meeting discussing the role occupational therapy practitioners could play in disaster response and how the board should proceed.

The board's ad hoc Disaster Preparedness and Response Committee reviewed results of a recent survey of 82 respondents and debated whether to pursue official recognition of occupational therapists (OTs) as "first responders" or, as several speakers and public commenters preferred, as disaster support professionals. Committee members and several board members agreed to hold further work and to reconvene the committee on April 16 to collect more input and, if warranted, field a shorter follow-up survey.

Why it matters: recognition as a first responder can carry legal and financial implications (benefits, deployment status, eligibility for certain emergency programs). The board’s decision could affect training, readiness expectations and how OTs are deployed during evacuations, shelter operations and other emergency activities.

Committee members said the prior survey was too small to be decisive. Mary Everett, a member of the ad hoc committee, described the survey as “a small sample” that “doesn’t really give us direction in terms of what action to propose to the board.” The committee nevertheless agreed there is heightened interest after the recent Los Angeles fires and that momentum may produce more responses if the board issues a shorter, targeted survey.

External experts and public commenters told the board OTs already perform functions in disasters that support immediate response efforts — for example, helping with transfers, shelter accessibility, transitional care for nursing-home residents and emergency caregiver training — but they differed on whether "first responder" is the right legal or public label. Emily Daywell, identified by the committee as a visiting expert, examined how federal and state agencies distinguish "first responders" from "emergency response providers" and advised the board that definitions vary across agencies and legal contexts.

Public commenters largely encouraged continued work. Ada Boone Horrell, identified in the record as COTA program director at Sacramento City College, said she did not want the discussion to become “stuck on the word ‘first responder’” and urged the board to explore a title such as “disaster support” that more accurately captures OT contributions. Candice, identified in the record as treasurer of the Occupational Therapy Association of California, told the board she supported continued work and encouraged additional outreach given the recent fires.

Clarifying details captured during the meeting: - Prior survey: 82 respondents; many respondents skipped workplace-related questions (committee estimated the licensee population at roughly 18,000–23,000, making the sample a small convenience sample). Committee members said the survey had been run using a DCA-provided platform (Solid at DCA) and carried no direct cost to the board. - Next meeting: Ad hoc committee scheduled an April 16 meeting at 9:00 a.m. (online) to review revised survey questions and hear from outside experts including Emily Daywell, if available. - Roles discussed for OTs: secondary/secondary-response functions (shelter accessibility, caregiver training, assistive equipment and triage support in post-acute settings), and episodic direct patient care in overflow settings.

The board did not adopt a rule or formal policy at this meeting. Instead the board and committee members directed staff to prepare a shorter follow-up survey for the April meeting, continue outreach to professional associations and advocacy groups, and return with analysis and recommendations.

The ad hoc committee’s next meeting is scheduled for April 16 at 9:00 a.m., and the board’s staff will circulate proposed survey questions in advance.