Will AI replace Occupational Therapy Assistants?
AI reaches some of this job’s work, but most of it stays with people.
22/100
Moderate exposure
More exposed to AI than 38% of US workers.
- AI already used in
- 0% of the work
- As AI tools mature: up to
- 32% of the work
What the job involves
Assist occupational therapists in providing occupational therapy treatments and procedures. May, in accordance with state laws, assist in development of treatment plans, carry out routine functions, direct activity programs, and document the progress of treatments. Generally requires formal training.
Where AI reaches the work
The job’s main tasks, heaviest first, by how far AI reaches them.
Within reach(7)
- Report to supervisors, verbally or in writing, on patients' progress, attitudes, and behavior.
- Observe and record patients' progress, attitudes, and behavior and maintain this information in client records.
- Select therapy activities to fit patients' needs and capabilities.
- Communicate and collaborate with other healthcare professionals involved with the care of a patient.
- Alter treatment programs to obtain better results if treatment is not having the intended effect.
and 2 more
Out of reach(15)
- Instruct, or assist in instructing, patients and families in home programs, basic living skills, or the care and use of adaptive equipment.
- Maintain and promote a positive attitude toward clients and their treatment programs.
- Implement, or assist occupational therapists with implementing, treatment plans designed to help clients function independently.
- Monitor patients' performance in therapy activities, providing encouragement.
- Attend continuing education classes.
and 10 more
Also called
Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant (COTA) · Occupational Therapist Assistant (OTA) · Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) · COTA · OTA · Certified Occupational Therapist Assistant (COTA) · Licensed Occupational Therapy Assistant (LOTA) · LOTA
Related jobs
What these numbers mean
The score is the share of this job’s work, weighted by how important and frequent each task is, that AI could do in half the time: tasks an AI model could do alone count in full, tasks that need software built on AI count half.
“AI already used” is the share of the work in tasks where people are recorded using AI today. “As AI tools mature” counts every task AI could halve, with or without extra software.
The percentile compares the score with every job’s, weighted by how many people in the US do each one. Exposure means AI could change how the work is done, not that the job goes away. These are estimates for the typical job, not predictions.
Sources
- O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration
- GPTs are GPTs: Labor market impact potential of LLMs (task labels), Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), OpenAI and University of Pennsylvania
- Anthropic Economic Index: labor market impacts (task penetration), Anthropic
- Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (national and metropolitan areas), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics