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Healthcare Support · United States (national)

Occupational Therapy Assistants

How exposed this work is to automation, shown as ranges with the reasoning and sources.

The short version: this role is moderately exposed to automation, and a near-term shift looks unlikely. It is a sourced range, not a verdict, and the detail is below.

Built on O*NET tasks, BLS pay and projections, and peer-reviewed AI-exposure research. Sources shown. Data snapshot SNAPSHOT-2026-11-06. How it works
23.3 of 100
AI / softwarerange 11.3 to 35.3
44.0 of 100
Physical / roboticsrange 32.0 to 56.0

When the change is likely

unlikely soon 0y 5y 10y 15y 20+y

Largely unaffected local demand growing

What to do about it

Use AI to outpace AI.

Strategies to protect your livelihood, most important first.

1
Stay sharp; urgency is low
This role looks durable. Keep your skills current and watch for shifts in your field.
2
Pivot toward Psychiatric Technicians
It is skill-adjacent and less exposed (34.0 vs 44). A lateral move now beats a forced one later.
3
Build a financial buffer
Keep 6 to 12 months of expenses and diversify your income, so a disruption is a setback rather than a catastrophe.
4
Add a recognised credential
A certification or license raises the bar against automation and signals value in a tightening market.

Which of my tasks are exposed

Instruct, or assist in instructing, patients and families in home programs, basic living skills, or the care and use of adaptive equipment.
100.0
Maintain and promote a positive attitude toward clients and their treatment programs.
44.0
Report to supervisors, verbally or in writing, on patients' progress, attitudes, and behavior.
50.0
Implement, or assist occupational therapists with implementing, treatment plans designed to help clients function independently.
100.0
Monitor patients' performance in therapy activities, providing encouragement.
100.0
Observe and record patients' progress, attitudes, and behavior and maintain this information in client records.
50.0
Select therapy activities to fit patients' needs and capabilities.
50.0
Attend continuing education classes.
44.0

Longer, orange bars are more automatable; short green bars are resistant.

What is driving my result

lowers risk
raises risk
Task: Instruct, or assist in instructing, patients and families in home programs, basic living skills, or the care and use of adaptive equipment.
Task: Implement, or assist occupational therapists with implementing, treatment plans designed to help clients function independently.
Local demand is growing

Lower-risk adjacent roles

Psychiatric Technicians
34.0
Occupational Therapy Aides
36.2
Physical Therapist Assistants
42.1
Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses
42.7

A full, ranked mitigation plan is part of the paid tiers.

How this score is calculated

  1. Map Occupational Therapy Assistants to its standard O*NET task list (8 core tasks).
  2. Score each task for AI/software exposure (Eloundou et al. 2023) and physical/robotics exposure (an O*NET work-context proxy), each 0 to 100.
  3. The two axis scores are the task averages: AI 23.3, robotics 44.0.
  4. The timeline comes from the higher axis (44.0), shifted for local demand (growing), and seniority. It is read against your remaining working years.
  5. Ranges are about ±12 points. A backtest against real BLS employment change shows the risk ranking holds in aggregate, but individual outcomes are predicted weakly, so results are ranges, never a flat verdict.

Sources: O*NET, Eloundou et al. (2023), GPTs are GPTs, O*NET Work Context, BLS CPI-U, BLS OEWS. Snapshot SNAPSHOT-2026-11-06. Full method and backtest on How it works.

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