Page 22 - Mobility Management, March 2020

20 MARCH 2020 | MOBILITY MANAGEMENT
MobilityMgmt.com
What Qualities & Experiences Are Most Important to Seating & Wheeled Mobility Success?
By Laurie Watanabe
At the 2019 International Seating Symposium (ISS) in Pittsburgh, Mark Schmeler, Ph.D., OTR/L, ATP, the director of the ISS when it’s hosted
in the United States every other year, told attendees that Assistive Technology Professionals (ATPs) are leaving the complex rehab technology (CRT) industry at a faster rate than they are being replaced. Though CRT is growing at 4.8 percent per year, the incoming rate of ATPs is just 1.8 percent, while the retirement rate for ATPs is
3.4 percent per year. The average age of ATPs, Schmeler said at the time, was 52 years. That’s 10 years older than the age (42 years) of the average American worker.
The industry has been responding. More seating and wheeled mobility courses and specialties are being offered at the university level, while some CRT providers have created mentorships and career paths to nurture potential ATPs and provide them with the education they’ll need to succeed.
Still, so much of an ATP’s day-to-day responsi- bilities isn’t easily captured in a classroom lecture or a textbook.
At a time when the industry is working hard to recruit, educate and raise up the next generation of ATPs, we asked current industry members what qualities are most important to an ATP’s success. In a survey, we asked participants to rate the importance of different skills and qualities, and then we asked them to share which qualities they think are most critical.
To encourage participants to be honest and expansive with their answers, we asked for their names and titles, but offered to keep that information confidential.
Participants were self selecting; we extended the invitation to the CRT industry via our newsletter, social media, and an e-mail campaign. We didn’t incentivize the survey.
Creating a Great ATP
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