Occupational Therapist: What is the cost of hiring?
2025-10-0141000.0096377.39173000.00YEARLY
Occupational Therapist: What is the cost of hiring?
As of April 2022, the average number of jobseekers per occupational therapist job in Australia is 2.5.
an occupational therapist: What is the cost of hiring?
As of April 2022, the average number of jobseekers per occupational therapist job in Australia is 2.5.
Why hire an occupational therapist?
Occupational therapists, often called OTs, help people whose health or disability makes it difficult for them to do the things they would like to do. Taking a holistic approach to healthcare, their aim is to equip people with the skills and tools that will help them to accomplish more and improve their wellbeing and quality of life.
Contributions of a great occupational therapist:
- Help people develop skills in self-care, self-management and community, work or school reintegration
- Assess home and/or work environments and recommend adaptations to enable people to live more independently
- Develop strategies to help with mental health issues
- Provide reports to other health professionals to assist in diagnosing patients
Deciding between a full-time vs freelance occupational therapist
If you run a nursing facility or occupational therapy practice, you’ll probably be looking for an OT to join your staff on a permanent basis, given the high demand for occupational therapy services. However, you might need an occupational therapist for a locum assignment to fill in for an employee who is on leave. In that case, you could post an ad for the locum position online, or you could also approach a medical
recruitment
agency.
If your business isn’t in the healthcare sector, and you only require an OT as a one-off, hiring a freelance occupational therapist might be a better option. For example, you may need an OT to help an employee who has an injury to reintegrate into your
workplace
. Or perhaps you want to hire an OT to perform an ergonomic assessment to minimise the risk of your employees injuring themselves at work.
What are the different types of occupational therapist?
Occupational therapy isn’t particularly hierarchical, but OTs specialise in a range of areas. Here are some of the main specialties:
- Gerontology: This type of OT supports elderly people in achieving their goals, which often involves empowering them to continue living in their home, preventing falls and providing practical solutions for them to perform daily tasks such as walking, toileting and bathing.
- Physical rehabilitation: These OTs work with patients who have a physical disability, injury or illness to improve their physical performance by providing patients with assistive aids. They may also implement other strategies, such as exercises, to increase physical capabilities or assist with pain management.
- Mental health: Working with other health professionals, occupational therapists assess patients who are experiencing psychological or emotional difficulties and provide them with suitable interventions. For example, if a patient is feeling socially isolated, a mental health occupational therapist might recommend a group program that could help the individual form social connections.
- Paediatrics: OTs in this field support children with learning difficulties, physical disabilities, delayed development or who are recovering from illness or injury. They aim to improve the child’s quality of life by helping them adjust to their issues.
Where to find an occupational therapist?
The competition for highly skilled occupational therapists is strong. To find the right occupational therapist for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:
- Use your contacts or connect with other practices in your area: Don’t underestimate how effective word-of-mouth can be in helping with your search for
talent
. Your contacts or other practices in your area might know of an OT who is looking for a new job. The peak professional body for OTs, Occupational Therapy Australia, also might be able to help you.
- Networking: Conferences and other networking events give you an opportunity to connect with other professionals who might be interested in working with you. You can also use the occasion to promote your business if you give a presentation.
- Form links with local universities: You could advertise at universities in your area to encourage the next generation of OTs to work for you after they graduate. You could also offer to provide internships for students, which could lead to permanent employment.
Post your job online: Try posting your occupational therapist job on Indeed to find and attract quality occupational therapist candidates.
Skills to look for in a great occupational therapist
A great occupational therapist candidate will have the following skills and attributes as well as work experience that reflects:
- a bachelor’s degree in occupational therapy and current registration with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA)
- compassion, a caring nature and patience
- creativity and problem-solving skills
- strong communication skills, particularly listening
- ability to be practical, innovative and observant
- strong organisational skills
Writing an occupational therapist job description
A thoughtful description is important for finding qualified occupational therapist candidates. An occupational therapist job description includes a compelling summary of the role, a detailed list of duties and responsibilities and the required and preferred skills for the position.
When writing your job description for an occupational therapist, consider including some or all of the following keywords to strengthen the visibility of your job posting. These are the most popular search terms leading to clicks on occupational therapist jobs, according to Indeed data:
- occupational therapist
- physiotherapist
- paediatric occupational therapist
- occupational therapy
- graduate occupational therapist
- occupational therapy assistant
- locum occupational therapist
- allied health assistant
- visa sponsorship, occupational therapist
- social worker
Interviewing occupational therapist candidates
Strong candidates for occupational therapist positions will be confident answering questions regarding:
- previous clinical experience
- establishing patient goals
- strategies for handling difficult situations with patients
- contributing to a multidisciplinary team
- experience using information systems to monitor patient progress
Need help coming up with interview questions? See our list of occupational therapist interview questions for examples (with sample answers).
*Indeed provides this information as a courtesy to users of this site. Please note that we are not your recruiting or legal advisor, we are not responsible for the content of your job descriptions, and none of the information provided herein guarantees performance.
