Hilary K.
Program: Occupational Therapist Assistant & Physiotherapist Assistant
What semester are you in: 2020 Graduate; Dean’s Honours List, Academic Award of Excellence
Why did you choose Humber?
When I decided to return to school to change careers, I looked into the educational backgrounds of OTA/PTAs working with major healthcare organizations across Toronto and was pleased to see that many of them were Humber graduates. The program is highly-regarded across the healthcare industry and has full accreditation from the Occupational Therapist Assistant and Physiotherapist Assistant Education Accreditation Program. I was also excited by the opportunities that Humber students had to complete clinical placements in a wide range of acute care, inpatient rehab, long-term care, and outpatient facilities during their studies.
What are your career aspirations?
Since graduating from Humber College, I have had the opportunity to work with a number of different acute care populations including Oncology, Multi-Organ Transplant, and Orthopaedics, as well as my current position in Spinal Cord Rehab. I owe much of the success in my career to date to the incredible education and hands-on training received at Humber College.
How have the faculty helped you on your road to reaching your goals?
The faculty of the Humber OTA/PTA program are skilled healthcare professionals with backgrounds working with diverse patient populations. This allows them to connect practical skills and theoretical learning to real-life examples of situations with patients. Instructors give honest feedback about strengths and areas for improvement, and are always willing to spend extra time reviewing skills. Knowing that the faculty wanted me to succeed gave me confidence going into exams, placements, and the workforce.
What would you say has been the single best learning experience in the program you are in?
The practical skills exams pushed me to think on my feet and use everything I’d learned over the previous semesters to address functional impairments in a variety of scenarios. The time limits at each station were effective in mimicking the quick pace of patient care settings and required me to be confident in the material in order to make safe, informed decisions under pressure. I left each practical skills exam aware of where my strengths lay and able to identify areas where I needed additional practice.
What elements of the program are best preparing you for your career?
The clinical placements arranged by Humber College were an outstanding way to put into practice all of the training and knowledge gained over the previous semester. Seeing patients benefit from our sessions was incredibly rewarding and reinforced the value of the work that I would be doing throughout my career. By working directly with patients, I was able to really finetune my communication and patient handling skills under the supervision of preceptors who were seasoned professionals; the staff gave daily feedback on ways to improve as a clinician. Clinical placements were also a great way to build rapport with staff, leading to my first job after graduation at a hospital where I had previously completed a placement.
Would you recommend this program to others, and why?
I would absolutely recommend Humber’s OTA/PTA program. The faculty encourages you to think about the clinical scenarios in which you will be applying the skills that you are learning and helps you build the “soft skills” that are important to good bedside manner as a clinician. The connections that I made through my clinical placements have been integral to my career success thus far. I am so proud to be a Humber College graduate.
