1. 100 Hour Narrative
I am currently interning with early childhood intervention also known as ECI in Alice,
Texas. I am observing an outpatient occupational therapist, who specializes in pediatrics. During
orientation, I learned that ECI is a statewide program that provides many services to children in
which it helps guide the family to improve developmental delay until the age of three. I also
trained on the many guidelines and procedures used for the program. Orientation taught me how
parents should be approach and how every child requires accommodations for different
disabilities and impairments. I was also introduced and became familiarized with the federal
regulations and state rules followed strongly and prudently by ECI.
I have been given many jobs when working with the therapist. I’ve been working with
many children who have numerous disabilities and impairments which include: nystagmus, down
syndrome, quadriplegic cerebral palsy, hemiplegic cerebral palsy, torticollis, blind, autistic, spina
bifida, and arterial ischemic stroke. I’ve worked with children from 5 weeks to 2 years of age. I
have been assigned to assist the therapist during therapy by using lighted therapeutic toys to get
the attention of babies while getting them to track using their sensory and motor skills. I stand in
front of the child as I move the therapeutic toys slowly left and right to for the babies to follow
using their head and neck muscles. Another job that has been assigned to me, includes passing
the therapeutic toys to the babies so that they work on crossing midline, which helps them
improve their developmental mile stones; I also help the babies stack blocks while also passing
blocks to them to place in a box. These exercises are done on a therapeutic ball which helps to
build core and shoulder muscles. I must also make sure the therapy balls have enough air and
prep the ball by laying a towel or blanket over, so the baby is most comfortable before therapy
begins. I have also been assigned to keep count of all therapeutic toys used at the patients’ home.
2. I am also in charge of making sure everything is transported back and sanitized before the next
patient.
Before starting this internship, I was very nervous to work with babies and toddlers
because I was afraid they wouldn’t not bonding with me or rejecting me completely. I have now
been interning for about three weeks and I have really enjoyed the children’s energy. I was most
surprised that I was naturally loved by the children, which made therapy that much more
interesting. I was truly amazed with how the therapeutic ball significantly impacted their success
of completing their goals and moving forward to new ones. With the ball, I learned that before
you can work on mobility, you must first work on stability through power, endurance, and
balance. With this, the babies are working on concentric, eccentric, and isometric contractions of
the muscles. The only dislikes I’ve encountered in this internship, is when the parents cancel
their appointments last minute or don’t make it on time. This throws our schedule off because of
domino effect which we have to rush to all the appointment the rest of that day. Another dislike
included some babies that are just not in the mood to do therapy because they may be sick or not
feeling up to it. This is very rare, but it does happen. When it does, we have to accommodate to
the baby’s comfort at all times. I just did not like making the babies more upset than they already
were when doing exercises with them.
I possess many strengths in which I am confident will aid in my success to become an
occupational therapist. I am very outgoing and can talk to everyone with ease, whether it be with
the families or staff. I am always smiling which makes me approachable to anyone. My strength
helps make therapy fun and comfortable for the entire family no matter the circumstance. I
always maintain an encouraging attitude for the children and I am always very understanding of
the parents’ concerns. I make the parents feel very comfortable that they sometimes forget that
3. I’m a student in training. I am very punctual which I feel is an important strength for this field
because everything must be organized and timely fashioned. Another strength of mine is that I
can adapt to change very well whether we have to do an evaluation for a baby or catch up on
notes for goals when patients cancel. The therapist and I are always on the go as we make it to
our scheduled appointments while typing notes of the child’s progress and new goals. I am very
adaptable to the environments and people I encounter whether it in a hospital setting, school
setting, or the home of a patient.
Some of my weaknesses that I have noticed and hope to improve to better myself so in
return I can help others. I tend to confuse patients with others and I hope to improve that by
organizing my thoughts on a planner of all the patients I see. I feel if I can have organized list of
patients in order that day, it will help me build an even stronger relationship with the baby as
well as the parents. I catch myself always asking the therapist what baby we are writing notes on
because I can’t remember whose name belongs to what face. I didn’t realize how many children
we see on a daily basis. I feel by really taking the time to individualize the patient, I can have a
better understanding of what goals can be made to better the child’s development. Another
weakness of mine is remembering the medical terminology and applying it to the internship. I
feel a lack of confidence in the some of the terms. I plan on writing all the terms of disorders the
patients have the day before so that I’m aware the child’s impairment while getting a better
understanding the situation so I can be more involved with therapy. I plan on studying and
improving my knowledge on the basic medical terminology so that I can help form daily notes
with some ideas and observations while still keeping it professional for the insurance to read. I
feel if I can work on these weaknesses I can better myself as person and as a future occupational
therapist.
