Virtual recreation therapy internship during the COVID-19 pandemic: A programmatic review

Authors

  • Alexandra Arpajian, MS, CTRS, LRT
  • Candace Ashton-Forrester, PhD, CTRS, LRT, FDRT
  • Brent Hawkins, PhD, CTRS, LRT, FDRT
  • Dan Johnson, PhD, CTRS, LRT

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5055/ajrt.2021.0241

Keywords:

COVID-19, internship, fieldwork, telehealth, virtual

Abstract

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, academic-, healthcare-, and community-based recreation therapy (RT) programs have been creative in how to help students progress in their curriculum and complete their capstone fieldwork experiences through remote means. This article reports one university’s RT program’s development, implementation, and evaluation of a virtual internship, where the university provided both academic and agency supervision that met the requirements of national and state credentialing bodies as well as RT accreditation standards. Evaluation data from students and clients who received RT services are summarized, and implications for other similar programs are reported.

Author Biographies

Alexandra Arpajian, MS, CTRS, LRT

Recreation Therapist, University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, North Carolina

Candace Ashton-Forrester, PhD, CTRS, LRT, FDRT

Professor, University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, North Carolina

Brent Hawkins, PhD, CTRS, LRT, FDRT

Associate Professor, University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, North Carolina

Dan Johnson, PhD, CTRS, LRT

Associate Professor, University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, North Carolina

References

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Published

10/01/2021

How to Cite

Arpajian, MS, CTRS, LRT, A., Ashton-Forrester, PhD, CTRS, LRT, FDRT, C., Hawkins, PhD, CTRS, LRT, FDRT, B., & Johnson, PhD, CTRS, LRT, D. (2021). Virtual recreation therapy internship during the COVID-19 pandemic: A programmatic review. American Journal of Recreation Therapy, 20(4), 6–14. https://doi.org/10.5055/ajrt.2021.0241

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Articles

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