Recreational therapist

Description

Recreational therapists offer treatment to persons who have behavioural disorders or conditions. They use techniques and interventions such as art, music, animals and dance to promote, maintain and restore the development and health of the patient.

Other titles

The following job titles also refer to recreational therapist:

recreation therapist
social therapist band 3
recreational activity provider
psychomotor therapist
social therapist
milieu therapist
activity co-ordinator
activities co-ordinator

Minimum qualifications

Bachelor’s degree is generally required to work as recreational therapist. However, this requirement may differ in some countries.

ISCO skill level

ISCO skill level is defined as a function of the complexity and range of tasks and duties to be performed in an occupation. It is measured on a scale from 1 to 4, with 1 the lowest level and 4 the highest, by considering:

  • the nature of the work performed in an occupation in relation to the characteristic tasks and duties
  • the level of formal education required for competent performance of the tasks and duties involved and
  • the amount of informal on-the-job training and/or previous experience in a related occupation required for competent performance of these tasks and duties.

Recreational therapist is a Skill level 4 occupation.

Recreational therapist career path

Similar occupations

These occupations, although different, require a lot of knowledge and skills similar to recreational therapist.

art therapist
dance therapist
animal assisted therapist
music therapist
specialist biomedical scientist

Long term prospects

These occupations require some skills and knowledge of recreational therapist. They also require other skills and knowledge, but at a higher ISCO skill level, meaning these occupations are accessible from a position of recreational therapist with a significant experience and/or extensive training.

Essential knowledge and skills

Essential knowledge

This knowledge should be acquired through learning to fulfill the role of recreational therapist.

Essential skills and competences

These skills are necessary for the role of recreational therapist.

Maintain healthcare user data confidentiality: Comply with and maintain the confidentiality of healthcare users` illness and treatment information.
Provide health education: Provide evidence based strategies to promote healthy living, disease prevention and management.
Listen actively: Give attention to what other people say, patiently understand points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times; able to listen carefully the needs of customers, clients, passengers, service users or others, and provide solutions accordingly.
Assess the patient’s therapeutic needs: Observe and assess the patient`s behaviour, attitudes and emotions in order to understand if and how their therapeutic needs can be met with a specific kind of therapy, collecting and analysing information on how the client makes, responds to, and relates to artistic stimulae. Relate this information to other aspects of the patient`s life.
Develop a collaborative therapeutic relationship: Develop a mutually collaborative therapeutic relationship during treatment, fostering and gaining healthcare users’ trust and cooperation.

Optional knowledge and skills

Optional knowledge

This knowledge is sometimes, but not always, required for the role of recreational therapist. However, mastering this knowledge allows you to have more opportunities for career development.

Eating disorders: The various types, pathophysiology and psychology of eating disorders such as anorexia, bulimia, binge-eating disorders and how they can be treated.
Health care legislation: The patients` rights and responsibilities of health practitioners and the possible repercussions and prosecutions in relation to medical treatment negligence or malpractice.
Fine arts: The theory and techniques required to compose, produce and perform works of visual arts as drawing, painting, sculpture and other art forms.
Sexology: The characteristics and evolution of human sexual activity, sexual orientation and the sexual relationship for various group types such as teenagers, elderly or disabled people.
Cognitive psychology: The human mental processes such as attention, memory, language use, perception, problem solving, creativity and thinking.
Health care occupation-specific ethics: The moral standards and procedures, ethical questions and obligations specific to occupations in a health care setting such as respect for human dignity, self-determination, informed consent and patient confidentiality.
Theory of art therapy: The art therapy history and theory, events, and practitioners, and the development of art therapy as a distinct therapeutic practice, the overview of psychotherapy theories relevant to art therapy, theories of creativity, and theoretical foundations of art therapy.
Human physiology: The science that studies the human organs and its interactions and mechanisms.
Geriatrics: Geriatrics is a medical specialty mentioned in the EU Directive 2005/36/EC.
Medical studies: The basics and terminology of medical studies.
Cognitive behavioural therapy: The solution-focused approach to treating mental disorders oriented towards solving problems by teaching new information-processing skills and coping mechanisms.
Autism: The characteristics, causes, symptoms and diagnosis of the neurodevelopmental disorder affecting social interaction, verbal and non-verbal communication and repetitive behaviour.
Reflexion: The way to listen to individuals, to summarise the major points and clarify what they are feeling in order to help them reflect on their behaviour.
Peer group methods: The techniques relevant for peer group education, where each member is encouraged to express or exchnage a particular type of behaviour or piece of information.
Neurology: Neurology is a medical specialty mentioned in the EU Directive 2005/36/EC.
Psychopharmacology: The awareness of various effects that medicines have on the patient or client’s behaviour, mood and thinking.
Disability types: The nature and types of disabilities affecting the human beings such as physical, cognitive, mental, sensory, emotional or developmental and the specific needs and access requirements of disabled people.
Psychotherapy principles: The fundamental principles and methods applied in psychotherapy to explore and resolve distressing behaviour or feelings.
Victimology: The relationships between victims and perpetrators, the frequency of victimization and the psychological effects it has on the victim.
Paediatrics: Paediatrics is a medical specialty mentioned in the EU Directive 2005/36/EC.
Sociology: The group behaviour and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.
Philosophy: The different philosophical systems, their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices and their impact on human culture.
Pedagogy: The discipline that concerns the theory and practice of education including the various instructional methods for educating individuals or groups.
Psychosociology: The implications related to how an individual is behaving, depending on the group to which the individual belongs to and how this influences him/her.
Human psychological development: The human psychological development across the lifespan, theories of personality development, cultural and environmental influences, human behavior, including developmental crises, disability, exceptional behavior, and addictive behavior.
Relaxation techniques: The various methods and techniques used to alleviate stress and bring peace and relaxation to the body and mind. This includes activities such as yoga, qigong or t`ai chi.
Animal therapy: The involvement of animals in a treatment in order to improve the social, emotional or cognitive functioning of the patient.
Dance therapy: The implementation of dance in a therapeutic treatment in order to improve the self-esteem and body image of the patient.
Psychology: The human behaviour and performance with individual differences in ability, personality, interests, learning, and motivation.
Music therapy processes: The development stage of a music therapy process which includes receiving patients referred to from healthcare professionals, educational professionals, completing an assessment through the study of medical or education records, interviewing the patient and observing the patient`s responses to music therapy techniques.
Behavioural therapy: The characteristics and foundations of behavioural therapy, which focuses on changing patients` unwanted or negative behaviour. It involves studying the present behaviour and the means by which this can be un-learned.
Anthropology: The study of development and behaviour of human beings.
Psychopathology: The criteria of psychiatric diagnoses, the use of the disease classification system, and the theories of psychopathology. The indicators of functional and organic disorders and the types of psychopharmacological medications.
Psychoacoustics: The characteristics of sound perception from music or speech and their psychological effects on the individual`s hearing.
Psychoanalysis: The types of psychoanalytic theories and techniques that relate to the unconscious mental processes
Types of music therapies: The different types of music therapies such as active, receptive and functional music therapy.

Optional skills and competences

These skills and competences are sometimes, but not always, required for the role of recreational therapist. However, mastering these skills and competences allows you to have more opportunities for career development.

Respond to changing situations in health care: Cope with pressure and respond appropriately and in time to unexpected and rapidly changing situations in healthcare.
Apply related sciences to music therapy: Use psychological or sociological elements in delivering music therapy.
Educate on the prevention of illness: Offer evidence-based advice on how to avoid ill health, educate and advise individuals and their carers on how to prevent ill health and/or be able to advise how to improve their environment and health conditions. Provide advice on the identification of risks leading to ill health and help to increase the patients’ resilience by targeting prevention and early intervention strategies.
Inform policy makers on health-related challenges: Provide useful information related to health care professions to ensure policy decisions are made in the benefit of communities.
Control animal movement: Direct, control or restrain some or part of an animal’s, or a group of animals’, movement.
Contribute to continuity of health care: Contribute to the delivery of coordinated and continuous healthcare.
Use e-health and mobile health technologies: Use mobile health technologies and e-health (online applications and services) in order to enhance the provided healthcare.
Ensure proper appointment administration: Set up a proper procedure to manage appointments, including policies related to cancellation and nonappearance.
Empathise with the healthcare user: Understand the background of clients` and patients’ symptoms, difficulties and behaviour. Be empathetic about their issues; showing respect and reinforcing their autonomy, self-esteem and independence. Demonstrate a concern for their welfare and handle according to the personal boundaries, sensitivities, cultural differences and preferences of the client and patient in mind.
Prepare treatment plan for art therapy: Make a treatment plan outlining possible art therapy strategies such as drawing, painting, sculpture, and collage with patients ranging from young children to the elderly, looking for forms of art therapy that might be helpful in meeting the patient`s needs.
Dance: Perform in artistic productions of differents disciplines such as classical ballet, modern dance, contemporary dance, early dance, ethnic dance, folk dance, acrobatic dances and street dance.
Record healthcare users’ progress related to treatment: Record the healthcare user’s progress in response to treatment by observing, listening and measuring outcomes.
Use art in a therapeutic setting: Work creatively with various groups of patients in a therapeutic setting.
Record treated patient’s information: Record information accurately relating to the progress of the patient during therapy sessions.
Recognise patients’ reaction to therapy: Respond to significant changes, patterns and dangers in the patient’s response to therapy.
Manage healthcare users’ data: Keep accurate client records which also satisfy legal and professional standards and ethical obligations in order to facilitate client management, ensuring that all clients’ data (including verbal, written and electronic) are treated confidentially.
Deal with emergency care situations: Assess the signs and be well-prepared for a situation that poses an immediate threat to a person’s health, security, property or environment.

 
Apply music therapy treatment methods: Use various active and receptive intervention techniques in music therapy such as singing, playing instruments, improvising or rhythmic based experiences.
Practice gestalt therapy: Use gestalt therapy techniques such as the empty chair technique and the exaggeration exercise in individual or group settings in the shape of creative exercises and experiments, aiming to make the individual understand different aspects of a conflict, experience, or mental health issue.
Plan music therapy sessions: Make a treatment plan, outlining possible strategies and musical experiences that might be helpful in meeting the patient`s needs, setting clear goals for the patients to achieve and agreeing on a programme of activity with the patient, to be reviewed at regular intervals.
Communicate effectively in healthcare: Communicate effectively with patients, families and other caregivers, health care professionals, and community partners.
Diagnose mental disorders: Formulate a diagnosis for people with a variety of issues and mental disorders, ranging from short-term personal and emotional problems to severe, chronic mental conditions, recognising and critically evaluating any possible mental health issues.
Encourage healthcare user’s self-monitoring: Encourage the healthcare user to engage in self-monitoring by conducting situational and developmental analyses on him- or herself. Assist the healthcare user to develop a degree of self-critique and self-analysis in regards to his behaviour, actions, relationships and self-awareness.
Handle patient trauma: Assess the competences, needs, and limitations of people affected by trauma, referring the patients to specialised trauma services where appropriate.
Advise on healthcare users’ informed consent: Ensure patients/clients are fully informed about the risks and benefits of proposed treatments so they can give informed consent, engaging patients/clients in the process of their care and treatment.
Apply art therapy interventions: Treat children, adolescents, adults, couples and families in inpatient, outpatient, partial treatment programs, and aftercare with art therapy interventions, to explore verbal, behavioral, and artistic communication, treatment planning, treatment approaches and relationship dynamics.
Write work-related reports: Compose work-related reports that support effective relationship management and a high standard of documentation and record keeping. Write and present results and conclusions in a clear and intelligible way so they are comprehensible to a non-expert audience.
Comply with quality standards related to healthcare practice: Apply quality standards related to risk management, safety procedures, patients feedback, screening and medical devices in daily practice, as they are recognized by the national professional associations and authorities.
Assess music therapy sessions: Review and assess music therapy sessions to monitor their effectiveness and to facilitate the planning of any subsequent sessions.
Comply with legislation related to health care: Comply with the regional and national legislation that is relevant to one`s work and apply it in practice.
Observe healthcare users: Observe healthcare users and record significant conditions and reactions to drugs, treatments, and significant incidents, notifying a supervisor or physician when required.
Apply health sciences: Apply a broad range of bio-medical, psycho-social, organisational, educational, and societal aspects of health, disease, and healthcare to improve healthcare services and to improve quality of life.
Apply music therapy assessment methods: Apply specific music therapy procedures and methods for client evaluation and possible preliminary diagnosis.
Adhere to organisational guidelines: Adhere to organisational or department specific standards and guidelines. Understand the motives of the organisation and the common agreements and act accordingly.
Apply risk management in sports: Manage the environment and athletes or participants to minimise their chances of suffering any harm. This includes checking appropriateness of venue and equipment and gathering relevant sport and health history from athletes or participants. It also includes ensuring appropriate insurance cover is in place at all times
Work in a multicultural environment in health care: Interact, relate and communicate with individuals from a variety of different cultures, when working in a healthcare environment.
Identify patients’ behaviours: Analyse and identify patient`s functional and dysfunctional behaviours.
Apply music therapy methods: Apply existing music therapy methods, techniques, materials, and equipment in line with the patient`s therapeutic needs and the treatment plan already created.
Promote inclusion: Promote inclusion in health care and social services and respect diversity of beliefs, culture, values and preferences, keeping in mind the importance of equality and diversity issues.
Assess art therapy sessions: Evaluate the effectiveness of art therapy sessions to aid the planning of subsequent sessions.
Organise relapse prevention: Help the patient or client identify and anticipate high risk situations or external and internal triggers. Support them in developing better coping strategies and back-up plans in case of future difficulties.
Employ foreign languages for health-related research: Use foreign languages for conducting and collaborating in health-related research.
Ensure safety of healthcare users: Make sure that healthcare users are being treated professionally, effectively and safe from harm, adapting techniques and procedures according to the person’s needs, abilities or the prevailing conditions.
Apply organisational techniques: Employ a set of organisational techniques and procedures which facilitate the achievement of the goals set. Use these resources efficiently and sustainably, and show flexibility when required.
Work with healthcare users’ social network: Get involved with the friends, families and other relevant actors important for the client or patient being treated, under the conditions of confidentiality and transparency.
Apply context specific clinical competences: Apply professional and evidence based assessment, goal setting, delivery of intervention and evaluation of clients, taking into account the developmental and contextual history of the clients, within one`s own scope of practice.
Develop a repertoire for music therapy sessions: Develop and maintain a repertoire of music for music therapy according to age, culture and stylistic differences.
Employ foreign languages in care: Communicate in foreign languages with healthcare users, their carers, or services providers. Use foreign languages to faciliate patient care according to the needs of the patient.
Refer healthcare users: Make referrals to other professionals, based on the healthcare user’s requirements and needs, especially when recognising that additional healthcare diagnostics or interventions are required.
Work in multidisciplinary health teams: Participate in the delivery of multidisciplinary health care, and understand the rules and competences of other healthcare related professions.
Take referred patients: Take referred patients, including self-referred ones and referrals from other professionals such as teachers, psychologists, therapists and psychiatrists.
Accept own accountability: Accept accountability for one`s own professional activities and recognise the limits of one`s own scope of practice and competencies.
Apply psychoanalysis: Conduct psychoanalysis on patients, focusing on unconscious forces that can have a negative effect on their psychological well-being.

ISCO group and title

2269 – Health professionals not elsewhere classified

 

 


 

 

References
  1. Recreational therapist – ESCO
Last updated on August 8, 2022