The following words, terms, and phrases, when used in this
part shall have the following meaning, unless the context clearly
indicates otherwise.
  (1) Act--The Occupational Therapy Practice Act, Title
3, Subtitle H, Chapter 454 of the Occupations Code.
  (2) AOTA--American Occupational Therapy Association.
  (3) Applicant--A person who applies for a license to
the Texas Board of Occupational Therapy Examiners.
  (4) Board--The Texas Board of Occupational Therapy
Examiners (TBOTE).
  (5) Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant (COTA®)--An
individual who uses this term must hold a regular or provisional license
to practice or represent self as an occupational therapy assistant
in Texas and must practice under the general supervision of an OTR®
or OT. An individual who uses this term is responsible for ensuring
that he or she is otherwise qualified to use it by maintaining certification
with NBCOT.
  (6) Class A Misdemeanor--An individual adjudged guilty
of a Class A misdemeanor shall be punished by:
    (A) A fine not to exceed $4,000;
    (B) Confinement in jail for a term not to exceed one
year; or
    (C) Both such fine and imprisonment (Vernon's Texas
Codes Annotated Penal Code §12.21).
  (7) Client--The entity that receives occupational therapy.
Clients may be individuals (including others involved in the individual's
life who may also help or be served indirectly such as caregiver,
teacher, parent, employer, spouse), groups, or populations (i.e.,
organizations, communities).
  (8) Complete Application--Notarized application form
with photograph, license fee, jurisprudence examination with at least
70% of questions answered correctly and all other required documents.
  (9) Complete Renewal--Contains renewal fee, renewal
form with signed continuing education affidavit, home/work address(es)
and phone number(s), and jurisprudence examination with at least 70%
of questions answered correctly.
  (10) Continuing Education Committee--Reviews and makes
recommendations to the board concerning continuing education requirements
and special consideration requests.
  (11) Coordinator of Occupational Therapy Program--The
employee of the Executive Council who carries out the functions of
the Texas Board of Occupational Therapy Examiners.
  (12) Direct Contact--Refers to contact with the client
which is face-to-face in person.
  (13) Endorsement--The process by which the board issues
a license to a person currently licensed in another state, the District
of Columbia, or territory of the United States that maintains professional
standards considered by the board to be substantially equivalent to
those set forth in the Act, and is applying for a Texas license for
the first time.
  (14) Evaluation--The process of planning, obtaining,
documenting and interpreting data necessary for intervention. This
process is focused on finding out what the client wants and needs
to do and on identifying those factors that act as supports or barriers
to performance.
  (15) Examination--The Examination as provided for in
Section 17 of the Act. The current Examination is the initial certification
Examination given by the National Board for Certification in Occupational
Therapy (NBCOT).
  (16) Executive Council--The Executive Council of Physical
Therapy and Occupational Therapy Examiners.
  (17) Executive Director--The employee of the Executive
Council who functions as its agent. The Executive Council delegates
implementation of certain functions to the Executive Director.
  (18) First Available Examination--Refers to the first
scheduled Examination after successful completion of all educational
requirements.
  (19) Intervention--The process of planning and implementing
specific strategies based on the client's desired outcome, evaluation
data and evidence, to effect change in the client's occupational performance
leading to engagement in occupation to support participation.
  (20) Investigation Committee--Reviews and makes recommendations
to the board concerning complaints and disciplinary actions regarding
licensees and facilities.
  (21) Investigator--The employee of the Executive Council
who conducts all phases of an investigation into a complaint filed
against a licensee, an applicant, or an entity regulated by the board.
  (22) Jurisprudence Examination--An examination covering
information contained in the Texas Occupational Therapy Practice Act
and Texas Board of Occupational Therapy Examiners rules. This test
is an open book examination with multiple choice or true-false questions.
The passing score is 70%.
  (23) License--Document issued by the Texas Board of
Occupational Therapy Examiners which authorizes the practice of occupational
therapy in Texas.
  (24) Medical Condition--A condition of acute trauma,
infection, disease process, psychiatric disorders, addictive disorders,
or post surgical status Synonymous with the term health care condition.
  (25) NBCOT--National Board for Certification in Occupational
Therapy.
  (26) Non-licensed Personnel--OT Aide or OT Orderly
or other person not licensed by this board who provides support services
to occupational therapy practitioners and whose activities require
on-the-job training and close personal supervision.
  (27) Non-Medical Condition--A condition where the ability
to perform occupational roles is impaired by developmental disabilities,
learning disabilities, the aging process, sensory impairment, psychosocial
dysfunction, or other such conditions which does not require the routine
intervention of a physician.
  (28) Occupation--Activities of everyday life, named,
organized, and given value and meaning by individuals and a culture.
Occupation is everything people do to occupy themselves, including
looking after themselves, enjoying life and contributing to the social
and economic fabric of their communities.
  (29) Occupational Therapist (OT)--An individual who
holds a valid regular or provisional license to practice or represent
self as an Occupational Therapist in Texas. This definition includes
an Occupational Therapist or one who is designated as an Occupational
Therapist, Registered (OTR®).
  (30) Occupational Therapist, Registered (OTR®)--An
individual who uses this term must hold a regular or provisional license
to practice or represent self as an Occupational Therapist in Texas
by maintaining registration through NBCOT.
  (31) Occupational Therapy Practice--Includes:
    (A) Methods or strategies selected to direct the process
of interventions such as:
      (i) Establishment, remediation, or restoration of a
skill or ability that has not yet developed or is impaired.
      (ii) Compensation, modification, or adaptation of activity
or environment to enhance performance.
      (iii) Maintenance and enhancement of capabilities without
which performance in everyday life activities would decline.
      (iv) Health promotion and wellness to enable or enhance
performance in everyday life activities.
      (v) Prevention of barriers to performance, including
disability prevention.
    (B) Evaluation of factors affecting activities of daily
living (ADL) instrumental activities of daily living (IADL), education,
work, play, leisure, and social participation, including:
      (i) Client factors, including body functions (such
as neuromuscular, sensory, visual, perceptual, cognitive) and body
structures (such as cardiovascular, digestive, integumentary, genitourinary
systems).
      (ii) Habits, routines, roles and behavior patterns.
      (iii) Cultural, physical, environmental, social, and
spiritual contexts and activity demands that affect performance.
      (iv) Performance skills, including motor, process,
and communication/interaction skills.
    (C) Interventions and procedures to promote or enhance
safety and performance in activities of daily living (ADL), instrumental
activities of daily living (IADL), education, work, play, leisure,
and social participation, including.
      (i) Therapeutic use of occupations, exercises, and
activities.
      (ii) Training in self-care, self-management, home management
and community/work reintegration.
      (iii) Development, remediation, or compensation of
physical, cognitive, neuromuscular, sensory functions and behavioral
skills.
      (iv) Therapeutic use of self, including one's personality,
insights, perceptions, and judgments, as part of the therapeutic process.

      (v) Education and training of individuals, including
family members, caregivers, and others.
      (vi) Care coordination, case management and transition
services.
      (vii) Consultative services to groups, programs, organizations,
or communities.
      (viii) Modification of environments (home, work, school,
or community) and adaptation of processes, including the application
of ergonomic principles.
      (ix) Assessment, design, fabrication, application,
fitting and training in assistive technology, adaptive devices, and
orthotic devices, and training in the use of prosthetic devices.
      (x) Assessment, recommendation, and training in techniques
to enhance functional mobility including wheelchair management.
      (xi) Driver rehabilitation and community mobility.
      (xii) Management of feeding, eating, and swallowing
to enable eating and feeding performance.
      (xiii) Application of physical agent modalities, and
use of a range of specific therapeutic procedures (such as wound care
management; techniques to enhance sensory, perceptual, and cognitive
processing; manual therapy techniques) to enhance performance skills.
  (32) Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA)--An individual
who holds a valid regular or provisional license to practice or represent
self as an Occupational Therapy Assistant in Texas, and who is required
to be under the continuing supervision of an OT. This definition includes
an individual who is designated as a Certified Occupational Therapy
Assistant (COTA®) or an Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA).
  (33) Occupational Therapy Plan of Care--A written statement
of the planned course of Occupational Therapy intervention for a patient/client.
It must include goals, objectives and/or strategies, recommended frequency
and duration, and may also include methodologies and/or recommended
activities.
  (34) Occupational Therapy Practitioners--Occupational
Therapists, and Occupational Therapy Assistants licensed by this board.
  (35) Outcome--The focus and targeted end objective
of occupational therapy intervention. The overarching outcome of occupational
therapy is engagement in occupation to support participation in context(s).

  (36) Place(s) of Business--Any facility in which a
licensee practices.
  (37) Practice--Providing occupational therapy as a
clinician, practitioner, educator, or consultant. Only a person holding
a license from TBOTE may practice occupational therapy in Texas.
  (38) Accredited Educational Program--An educational
institution offering a course of study in occupational therapy that
has been accredited or approved by the Accreditation Council for Occupational
Therapy Education (ACOTE) of the American Occupational Therapy Association.

  (39) Rules--Refers to the TBOTE Rules.
  (40) Screening--A process used to determine a potential
need for occupational therapy interventions, educational and/or other
client needs. Screening information may be compiled using observation,
client records, the interview process, self-reporting, and/or other
documentation.