The Importance of the Therapeutic Relationship

In our foundations class this past Tuesday, we talked more about therapeutic relationships, which is the relationship between the occupational therapy practitioner and the client. It is important to have a good relationship with your clients because then they will have a better reason to trust you and your overall judgement. There are several key aspects that go into building a good therapeutic relationship with your client. Some include, following through with intervention plans, being on time to appointments, honesty, putting the client first, using clear client friendly language, showing empathy, and demonstrating active listening. Another quality that is beneficial, in my opinion, is having the capability of humor. Clients don't want to come to an OT session that's dry and boring. I'm sure a client would much rather come an appointment where the air is warm and friendly, and where it is perfectly acceptable to be yourself and laugh at yourself sometimes.

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