Live Webinar CEU Opportunities for Occupational Therapy Professionals

In the rapidly evolving field of healthcare, occupational therapy practitioners need to stay ahead of the curve. Live webinars offering Continuing Education Units (CEUs) provide a convenient and effective way to meet this need. These webinars, often approved by the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), are designed to provide real-world practice insights and help OTs and OTAs meet their state licensure and National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT) Professional Development Units (PDUs) requirements.

The Value of Continuing Education in Occupational Therapy

Continuing education (CE) is more than just a requirement; it's a cornerstone of professional growth. It enables practitioners to stay updated on the latest research, techniques, and best practices in occupational therapy. By participating in CE activities, OTs can enhance their clinical skills, improve patient outcomes, and maintain their professional competence.

Staying Compliant and Growing Clinical Skills

Navigating the world of Occupational Therapy Continuing Education (CEUs) can be overwhelming. Whether you are a new grad or a seasoned practitioner, staying compliant while actually growing your clinical skills requires a clear roadmap. Every state board has its own rules regarding the number of hours and the format (Online vs. Live) allowed. You can find your specific state’s rules in an OT CEU Requirements Guide. To maintain your national certification, you must earn 36 Professional Development Units (PDUs) every three years.

Tracking and Impactful CEUs

While earning your credits is the first step, tracking them is just as important. Most state boards manage compliance through a random audit process. Secure Certificate Storage securely stores every PDF certificate you earn in your member dashboard. The most impactful CEUs are those that translate the latest research into immediate clinical takeaways. From Pediatric Sleep to Chronic Stroke Rehab, your professional development should empower you to deliver better care.

Live Webinars: An Engaging and Interactive Learning Format

Live webinars offer a unique learning experience that combines the convenience of online education with the engagement of in-person events. These interactive sessions allow participants to interact with leading experts, ask questions, and network with peers in real-time.

Benefits of Live Webinars

Real-time Interaction: Live webinars provide the opportunity for direct interaction with the presenter and other attendees. This fosters a dynamic learning environment where participants can ask questions, share insights, and receive immediate feedback.
Expert Guidance: Live webinars feature leading experts in occupational therapy who share their knowledge, experience, and insights on specific topics. This allows participants to learn from the best and gain valuable perspectives on current trends and challenges in the field.
Flexibility and Convenience: Live webinars offer the flexibility to learn from anywhere with an internet connection. This eliminates the need for travel and allows participants to fit CE activities into their busy schedules.
Meeting "Live" Requirements: Four states require a portion of your hours to be “live” or “synchronous”.

Key Providers of Live Webinar CEUs for OTs

Several organizations offer live webinar CEUs for occupational therapists. These include:

OT Potential

OT Potential offers AOTA-approved online OT CEU courses designed for real-world practice. Nearly every week, they host a live OT CEU webinar with a leading expert-then make each course available on demand through your favorite podcast app or YouTube. Their AOTA-approved courses meet the requirements for online OT CEUs in all 50 states. OT Potential is bridging the gap between OT curriculum and real-world practice-and between practicing clinicians and the general public. While continuing education is at the heart of what they do, they also create tools intended for use in classes to train OT students-as well as public-facing resources to educate consumers about occupational therapy. OT Potential provides automated reporting to CE Broker. Once you complete a live webinar occupational therapy CEU course, they will report your completion within 48 hours.

OT Potential courses are designed to meet your continuing education requirements for “online” and “independent/self-study” courses. Courses designated as live webinars also meet the requirements for “interactive live courses.” They are AOTA-approved for both “distance learning-independent” and “distance learning-interactive.” Their courses also meet the requirements for NBCOT PDUs. To verify the CEU requirements for your specific state (within the US), check out their blog post on OT Continuing Education Requirements. They designed their courses to live on the platforms you already use. All courses are available on Spotify, Apple, and everywhere you listen to podcasts. Courses released after June 2023 also appear on YouTube. After watching or listening, log into the OT Potential Club to take your test, earn your certificate, and access supplemental tools and resources.

Each 1-hour course includes:

A written review of the research
A podcast episode
A YouTube video of the episode (for courses released after June 2023)
Supplemental materials
A quiz to earn a certificate

Many courses also feature specific assessment tools, which are added to their growing assessment search. Any accompanying documentation examples supplied by course experts are also added to their member resource library. They center each course on highly-cited new research. The research often has implications spanning multiple practice areas. To help you find the courses most relevant to you, they’ve tagged them based on applicable practice area(s): Pediatrics, Adult Rehab, Non-clinical, Outpatient, School-based, SNF, Acute Care, Mental Health, Early Intervention, Home Health, and Ethics. Courses released in June 2023 or later feature all of the accessibility features offered by YouTube, including closed captions and a live transcript. They can also generate full PDF transcripts for any of their podcast episodes by request.

Read also: Elevating Healthcare Education

Aspire OT

Created by OT practitioners JUST for OT practitioners, Aspire OT's live occupational therapy continuing education services allow you to advance your skills and help your patients. Choosing Aspire OT for your CE needs means you are supporting other OT and OTA instructors as well as their partner Occupational Therapy Associations. They can customize any of their Aspire OT courses for your company, group, or organization. Aspire OT's subscription gives OTs OTAs and occupational therapy students access to high-quality CEs that won't break the bank. The Live Web presentations tend to feel more "Live", than other forums. Even ones that are not too interactive feel very "connected". Some is owed to the warm, personable and experienced presenters, however, the ability to "Pipe in" live either texting; or on video or audio with a question or comment makes the presentation feel as if you are physically present among friends.

AOTA

AOTA is a trusted source of knowledge and professional development for occupational therapy practitioners. You can select from a wide variety of course topics to advance your career and meet your certification and licensure requirements. They offer a variety of course types, from article-based courses to multi-module eLearning courses. Immerse yourself in downloadable articles written by scholars and master clinicians on a wide range of topics pertinent to your practice area. Enjoy their highly interactive, asynchronous, and personal-device-ready online courses that cover current topics of interest across practice areas.

Meeting State-Specific Requirements

It's important to note that continuing education requirements vary by state. Some states require a certain number of live CEUs, while others have specific requirements for the topics covered in CE courses.

State-Specific Live CEU Requirements

Florida: Requires at least 14 hours of occupational therapy continuing education to be in person or from interactive, real-time courses.
Georgia: Requires at least 12 hours of the required twenty-four (24) continuing education hours must be on a topic related to direct patient care. This includes occupational therapy assessment, treatment planning, occupational therapy implementation and diagnostic-related information. This must include attendance at live presentations such as workshops, seminars, conferences, or formal academic coursework, or real-time, interactive webinars. To qualify as a real-time, interactive webinar, the licensee must have the ability to ask questions, receive an answer, and interact with other attendees at the time the session is taking place.
Michigan: Requires at least 10 hours of “live, synchronous, and interactive courses and programs, either in-person or virtual, that provide for the opportunity for direct interaction during the course or program” for each renewal cycle, which lasts 2 years.
Mississippi: Rules state: “Thirteen (13) hours are required to be live face-to-face training (i.e., no non-live internet training, video training, television training, etc.) Live webinars will be accepted, but the certificate must specify the CEU was provided in a live format.
Kansas: Does not require live CEUs per se, but it can be difficult to obtain all 40 hours without them. The state of Kansas requires a whopping 40 hours of CEUs!
Tennessee: Does not require live/interactive courses per se, but they do limit the number of “independent study” credits you can obtain.

Sample Live Webinar CEU Courses

Here are some examples of live webinar CEU courses offered for occupational therapists:

Foundations In Cognitive Rehabilitation For Occupational Therapy Practice: Presented by Adam Ly, MScOT, OT Reg.
Bridging The Gap: Occupational Therapy In Cystic Fibrosis: Presented by Madeline Johnson, OTD/S, BS Psychology, Allie Turner, OTD, OTR/L, CKTP, CEIM
Blood Flow Restriction Therapy In Rehabilitation: Physiological Mechanisms, Clinical Applications, And Safety Considerations For OT/PT Practice: Presented by Rina Pandya, PT. DPT, FHEA, PGLTHE
Priming To Maximize Outcomes In Neurorehabilitation: Presented by Rebecca Martin, OTR/L, OTD, CPAM, CKTPLive Webinar
Pediatric Bilingual-Learner Primer For Therapists: Presented by Tara Konradi, OTD, OTR/L
Prenatal Preventative Measures For De Quervain's Tenosynovitis: Presented by Tina Dimopoulos, OTD, OTR/L, CHT, STOTT PILATES® Certified Instructor for Mat and Reformer
Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI): Assessment and Treatment: Presented by Kim McCullough, PhD, CCC-SLP
Cannabis: Implications For Physical And Occupational Therapy: Presented by Melissa Bednarek, PT, DPT, PhD, CCS
Mindful Burnout Training: Presented by Olivia Petrucci, MS, OTR/L
A Guide For Occupational Therapy Practitioners Bridging To Academia: Presented by Andy Pitts, DrOT, OTR/L