The Heart of OTCC
During my doctoral training in occupational therapy (OT), I quickly recognized three recurring challenges in practice:
Accessing the right information efficiently was often cumbersome, the gap between evidence and real-world application was wider than expected, and the very thing that makes occupational therapy unique (the focus on meaningful participation) was at times overshadowed by an emphasis on bottom-up approaches, insurance constraints, and high caseload demands.
Additionally, clinicians are expected to navigate a vast landscape of resources, constantly filtering what is evidence-based, clinically relevant, and current. This process takes time… Time that is already limited in real-world practice.
The Occupational Therapy Clinical Companion (OTCC) was developed to address these three persistent challenges in practice:
1. Consistency in Practice & Professional Identity
Occupational therapy’s strength lies in occupation-centered care, yet variability in practice can blur its distinct role in healthcare. OTCC supports consistent, occupation-focused clinical reasoning at the point of care.
2. Gap Between Evidence and Practice
There is often a significant delay between emerging evidence and real-world adoption. OTCC translates evidence into concise, clinically usable insights to support timely, informed decision-making.
3. Access to Reliable, OT-Specific Resources
Clinicians frequently navigate multiple sources to find relevant information. OTCC consolidates high-yield, evidence-informed content into a single, structured resource designed for quick reference in practice.
OTCC Essence
This platform is designed to reduce cognitive load by providing structured, evidence-informed guidance that can be accessed quickly and applied in practice. Rather than searching across multiple sources, OTCC brings key considerations into one place, organized in a way that supports clinical reasoning without replacing it.
At its core, OTCC is built to support occupational therapy as it is meant to be practiced:
Occupation-first
Clinically grounded (evidence based)
Practical and efficient
The goal is simple:
To help clinicians spend less time searching and more time doing what matters most, supporting meaningful participation in the lives of the people they serve.
OTCC Philosophy
OTCC provides direction but clinical reasoning determines the path.
This clinical companion tool is not designed to tell you exactly what to do. It is designed to help you understand which direction to go. Like a compass, it provides orientation but it doesn’t account for everything in the environment. There may be obstacles, barriers, or better paths that aren’t immediately obvious.That’s where clinical reasoning comes in.
The clinician determines the best way forward based on the individual, the context, and the circumstances.
OTCC reflects a commitment to keeping occupational therapy grounded in its core purpose, helping individuals move beyond recovery and return to living. Developed by an occupational therapy doctoral student, OTCC focuses on building practical, evidence-informed tools that support real-time clinical reasoning and preserve occupation-centered practice. This resource is developed alongside ongoing clinical training and shaped by feedback from practicing occupational therapists and experienced educators. It is continuously refined to reflect current evidence, practical application, and real-world use.
J.R. Livingston, OTS, CPT
Contact OTCC
We welcome feedback and are always looking for ways to improve. If you would like to share input or contribute to the OTCC project, please complete the form.
Thank you for your support.
Support OTCC
OTCC is designed to provide free, practical resources to support clinicians in delivering effective, occupation-centered care. Maintaining and improving this platform requires ongoing time, effort, and operational costs (e.g., hosting, domain, and development tools).
If you find value in OTCC, your support is greatly appreciated. Contributions directly support continued development, expanded functionality, and ongoing refinement of the platform.
Even a small contribution helps strengthen the occupational therapy community, reinforce the profession’s identity in healthcare, and support clinicians in helping individuals return to meaningful participation in their daily lives. OTCC will always remain a free resource.
Thank you for your support.