A non-traditional Level II fieldwork site: A student’s perspective on benefits

In the summer of 2022, I completed my first Level II fieldwork placement at Rebuilding Together East Bay-North (RTEBN). This placement was considered an emerging area of practice for several reasons. Firstly, it provided occupational therapy (OT) through community-based organizations and was funded by a grant. This diverges from the traditional medical model, which is typically funded by insurance or private pay in three ways. First, clients accessed occupational therapy through their current participation with community organizations instead of through a hospital, physician’s office, or other medical facility. Second, we provided OT to under-served populations, including the unhoused population, low-income individuals, and those with a history of incarceration. Third, we offered interventions to support aging in place, mental health, and health and wellness. Although this setting is not typical for fieldwork students, there were many opportunities for our learning. We partnered with RTEBN staff to complete home assessments addressing health, safety, and functional concerns for low-income homeowners and provided in-home OT for those who required additional services to remain safe in their homes. We partnered with two additional community organizations where we led weekly OT health and wellness groups at a transitional housing site (Horizon Transitional Village [HTV]) and provided skilled instruction in the use of adaptive devices at a medical equipment collection and redistribution center (ReCARES). Even though this is an emerging area of practice, this fieldwork placement offered tremendous opportunity to grow our OT skills. The following are some of the benefits.