OT EXAM PRACTICE QUESTIONS AND
ANSWERS
A nclient nwill ninitiate ndressing nat nthe nappropriate ntime nof nthe nday nbut nwill nnot
nattend nto nthe nday, ntemperature, nor nseason. nThe nclient nis nable nto ndon nclothing
nslowly nbut nhas ndifficulty nwith nfasteners nor nfails nto nsee nerrors nin nthe nback n(i.e.,
nnot ntucking nin nthe nshirt). nAt nwhat nstage nof nthe nAllen nCognitive nLevel nScreen nis
nthis nclient?
A. n4.4
B. n4.0
C. n3.6
D. n3.2 n- ncorrect nanswers n-B. n
The nquestion ndescribes ntypical ndressing nbehaviors nof nclients nat nMode n4.0; na
nclient nwould nattend nto nvisible nsensory ncues nand nignore nwhat nis nnot nin nplain
nsight n(e.g., nnot ntucking nin nthe nback nof nthe nshirt).
,A npatient nin nthe nearly nstages nof namyotrophic nlateral nsclerosis n(ALS) npresents
nwith nweakness nin nthe nthenar neminence. nDuring nwhich nADL ntask nwould nthe
nevaluating nOTR® nMOST nLIKELY nobserve nthe neffect non nfunction?
A. nTransferring nfrom nthe nbed nto nthe nbedside ncommode
B. nTaking na nsip nfrom na nglass nof nwater
C. nReaching noverhead nto ndon na nT-shirt
D. nSqueezing ntoothpaste nonto na ntoothbrush n- ncorrect nanswers n-D.
Typical nearly nsigns nof nALS nare ndistal, nwith nweakness nof nthe nsmall nmuscles nof
nthe nhand nbeing nthe nmost ntypical ninitial nsymptom. nThe nmuscles nthat nmake nup
nthe nthenar neminence nare nresponsible nfor nopposition nof nthe nthumb. nSqueezing
ntoothpaste nand nholding na ntoothbrush nrequire ngrasp-and-pinch npatterns nthat
ninvolve nthumb nopposition.
The nOTR® nis nworking non na ntask-oriented ngardening nactivity nwith na nsmall ngroup
nof nadolescents nin nan ninpatient nmental nhealth nsetting. nOne nof nthe nparticipants
nbecomes nself-absorbed nand ndistractible nand nhas nbursts nof nenergy nthat nare
naffecting nthe nother nmembers nof nthe ngroup. nWhat nis nthe nOTR®'s nMOST
nappropriate nresponse?
A. n"How nare nwe ndoing nwith nour npot ntransfer? nWe nneed nto nget nthis ndone
ntoday."
B. n"Can nI nspeak nto nyou nprivately nabout nyour nbehavior nduring nthe ngroup nwork?"
C. n"You nseem nto nbe ndistracting nthe nother nmembers nof nthe ngroup."
D. n"Please nstop nwhatever nit nis nyou nare ndoing." n- ncorrect nanswers n-A.
When na nclient nstarts nshows nsymptoms nof na nmanic nepisode, nparticularly
nemotional nand ncognitive nsymptoms, nit nis nbest nto nhelp nthe nclient nengage nin
ngoal-directed naction.
A nCOTA® nis nworking ntoward nservice ncompetency nfor nadaptive nfeeding
nequipment ninstruction. nHow nwould nthe nOTR® nBEST nestablish nservice
ncompetency?
A. nReview nthe nCOTA's ndocumentation nof nmultiple npatients nwhose nfeeding
nimpairments nwarranted nadaptive nequipment, nthen ndiscuss nthe noutcomes nwith nthe
nCOTA.
B. nObserve nthe nCOTA neducate nclients non nhow nto nuse nadaptive nfeeding
nequipment nto nensure nthat nthe nCOTA ninstructs nclients nin nthe nsame nmanner nas
nwould nthe nOTR.
C. nCompare noutcomes nby nrating nthe nsame nclient's nperformance nwith nthe
nadaptive nfeeding nequipment nat nthe nsame nlevel nof nindependence.
D. nCollect ninformation nfrom nvarious nsources, nincluding nother ntherapists, nthe
nCOTA's ndocumentation, nand nfeedback nfrom nclients, nto ndetermine ncompetency. n-
ncorrect nanswers n-C.
,Service ncompetency nis ndefined nas n"the nprocess nof nteaching, ntraining, nand
nevaluating nin nwhich nthe nOTR® ndetermines nthat nthe nCOTA® nperforms ntasks nin
nthe nsame nway nthat nthe nOTR nwould nand nachieves nthe nsame noutcomes"
n(Youngstrom, n2009, np. n943). nIn nthis nexample, nboth nthe nCOTA nand nOTR
nobserve nthe nsame nclient nperforming na ntask nand nrate nthat nperformance nin na
nsimilar nmanner. nComparing noutcomes nhelps nto nensure nclients nreceive ncare nof
nequal nquality.
An nOTR® nis nperforming nfamily ntraining nwith na nclient nwith nStage nVI namyotrophic
nlateral nsclerosis n(ALS) nwho nis npreparing nfor ndischarge nhome. nWhich npoints nare
nMOST nIMPORTANT nfor nthe nOTR® nto naddress?
A. nAdaptive nequipment nfor nADLs nand nhow nto nset nup nthe nclient nwith nALS nto
nperform nas nindependently nas npossible
B. nEnergy nconservation nfor nthe nclient nwith nALS, nas nwell nas ncaregiver nsupport
nresources nto nprevent nburnout
C. nPositioning nto nprevent nskin nbreakdown, na nROM nhome nprogram, nand nsafe
nbed nmobility nand ntransfers
D. nTherapeutic nexercises nfor nthe nclient nwith nALS nand nhow ncaregivers ncan nuse
nproper nbody nmechanics n- ncorrect nanswers n-C.
A nclient nwith nend-stage nALS nwould nlikely nbe ntotally ndependent nfor nall nADL nand
nmobility, nthus nrequiring nmajor ncaregiver nassistance nfor nbed nmobility nand
ntransfers. nAn nOTR® ninstructing nfamily nmembers nin nthese ntechniques nwould
neducate nthem non nbody nmechanics. nPositioning nand nROM nat nthis nstage nare
nimportant nto nprevent ndiscomfort, ncontractures, nand nskin nbreakdown.
A nCOTA® nworking non nan ninpatient nrehabilitation nunit nhas nhad ntwo npatients nfall
nin nthe npast nmonth. nThe nsupervising nOTR® nhas nconcerns nabout nthe nCOTA®'s
nsafety nawareness nduring ncertain ninterventions. nWhich napproach nis nthe nBEST nfor
nthe nOTR® nto ntake nto naddress nthese nconcerns?
A. nSpeak nwith nthe nrehabilitation nmanager nabout npossible ndisciplinary naction.
B. nReview nthe ndocumentation nof nthe ntwo npatients nwho nfell nand ndiscuss ntheir
ncases nthoroughly nwith nthe nCOTA® nto ndetermine nthe ncauses nof nthe nfalls.
C. nAsk nthe nCOTA® nwhether nmore nthorough nsupervision nis nneeded nand nthen
nproceed nto nprovide nclose nsupervision.
D. nCollaborate nwith nthe nCOTA® nto ndetermine npotential ncauses nof nthe nfalls nand
nprovide ndirect nsupervision nwith nmore ndeliberate nfeedback. n- ncorrect nanswers n-D.
Supervision nthat nis nmore nfrequent nmay nbe nnecessary nwhen nthe nOTR®, nCOTA®,
nor nboth ndetermine nthat nadditional nsupervision nis nneeded nto nensure nsafe nand
neffective ndelivery nof noccupational ntherapy nservices. nIn nthis ncase, nsafety nis na
nmajor nconcern, nand ntherefore nadditional nsupervision nmay nbe nnecessary.
An nOTR® nevaluates na nclient nwho nhas njust nentered nthe nplateau nphase nof
nGuillain-Barré nsyndrome n(GBS). nWhen nassessing nADLs, nwhat nwould nthe nOTR
nmost nlikely nexpect nto nsee?
, A. nBowel nand nbladder nincontinence, nwhich naffects nskin nintegrity nand ntoileting
nroutine
B. nUnilateral nsensory nimpairments, nwhich naffect nfine nmotor ntasks nsuch nas noral
ncare
C. nEdema nand nweakness nin nthe nlower nextremities, nwhich nmakes nbathing nand
ndressing ndifficult
D. nShoulder nweakness, nwhich nresults nin ndecreased nindependence nin nupper-body
nbathing nand ndressing n- ncorrect nanswers n-C.
In nthe nplateau nphase, nsymptoms nare nat ntheir nmost nsevere: nEdema nand
nweakness nare ncommon nsymptoms nwith nGBS. nBecause nsymptoms nare ntypically
nsymmetrical nand nascend nfrom ndistal nto nproximal, nbilateral nsymptoms nwould
nlikely naffect nlower-body nself-care.
An nOTR® nis nassessing nbed nmobility nwith na nclient nwith nGuillain-Barré nsyndrome
n(GBS) n2 nweeks ninto nthe nplateau nphase. nThe npatient nreports ndizziness non
nperforming nsupine nto nsit nat nthe nedge nof nthe nbed nand nbegins nto nlie nback ndown.
nWhat nstep nis nMOST nappropriate nfor nthe nOTR® nto ntake?
A. nEncourage nthe npatient nto nremain nupright nand nallow nfor nthe ndizziness nto
nsubside nby nperforming nsimple nROM nexercises nto npromote ncirculation.
B. nAssist nthe npatient nback nto nbed nsafely, nlower nthe nhead nof nthe nbed, nand
nmonitor nvitals, ncomparing nthe ncurrent nblood npressure nwith nthe nresting nblood
npressure.
C. nAssist nthe npatient nback nto nbed nslowly, nelevate nthe nlower nextremities, nand
nimmediately nsearch nfor nthe nnurse nto nassess nthe npatient.
D. nEducate nthe npatient non nthe nimportance nof nsitting nupright nand nout nof nbed nto
nhelp nregulate nthe nnervous nsystem nand nprevent nsecondary ncomplications. n-
ncorrect nanswers n-B.
People nwith nGBS nare nat nrisk nfor nautonomic nnervous nsystem ndysfunction nsuch
nas npostural nhypotension nor nexperiencing na nsignificant ndrop nin nsystolic nblood
npressure non nmoving nfrom na nhorizontal nto nan nupright nposition. nCommon namong
npeople nwho nendure na nprolonged ntime nin nbed, nthe nchange nin nposition ncauses
nblood nto nrush nto nthe nlower nextremities, nresulting nin nfeelings nof nlightheadedness
nor ndizziness. nThe nbest noption nis nto nslowly nand ncarefully nassist nthe npatient nback
nto nsupine, nmonitor nblood npressure, nposition nthe npatient nin nTrendelenberg n(lower
nthe nhead nof nthe nbed nand nraise nthe nlower nextremities), nrecheck nblood npressure,
nand nthen nalert nnursing, nleaving nthe ncall nlight nin nreach.
With nwhich nsituation nwould na nchild nwith nautism nspectrum ndisorder n(ASD) nlikely
nhave ndifficulty?
A. nRemembering na nparent's nwork ntelephone nnumber
B. nCopying nhomework nassignments ninto na ndaily nplanner
C. nBeing nable nto npick nup non na npeer's nnonverbal ncues nduring na nconversation
D. nGiving na nspeech non npreferred ntopic n- ncorrect nanswers n-C.
ANSWERS
A nclient nwill ninitiate ndressing nat nthe nappropriate ntime nof nthe nday nbut nwill nnot
nattend nto nthe nday, ntemperature, nor nseason. nThe nclient nis nable nto ndon nclothing
nslowly nbut nhas ndifficulty nwith nfasteners nor nfails nto nsee nerrors nin nthe nback n(i.e.,
nnot ntucking nin nthe nshirt). nAt nwhat nstage nof nthe nAllen nCognitive nLevel nScreen nis
nthis nclient?
A. n4.4
B. n4.0
C. n3.6
D. n3.2 n- ncorrect nanswers n-B. n
The nquestion ndescribes ntypical ndressing nbehaviors nof nclients nat nMode n4.0; na
nclient nwould nattend nto nvisible nsensory ncues nand nignore nwhat nis nnot nin nplain
nsight n(e.g., nnot ntucking nin nthe nback nof nthe nshirt).
,A npatient nin nthe nearly nstages nof namyotrophic nlateral nsclerosis n(ALS) npresents
nwith nweakness nin nthe nthenar neminence. nDuring nwhich nADL ntask nwould nthe
nevaluating nOTR® nMOST nLIKELY nobserve nthe neffect non nfunction?
A. nTransferring nfrom nthe nbed nto nthe nbedside ncommode
B. nTaking na nsip nfrom na nglass nof nwater
C. nReaching noverhead nto ndon na nT-shirt
D. nSqueezing ntoothpaste nonto na ntoothbrush n- ncorrect nanswers n-D.
Typical nearly nsigns nof nALS nare ndistal, nwith nweakness nof nthe nsmall nmuscles nof
nthe nhand nbeing nthe nmost ntypical ninitial nsymptom. nThe nmuscles nthat nmake nup
nthe nthenar neminence nare nresponsible nfor nopposition nof nthe nthumb. nSqueezing
ntoothpaste nand nholding na ntoothbrush nrequire ngrasp-and-pinch npatterns nthat
ninvolve nthumb nopposition.
The nOTR® nis nworking non na ntask-oriented ngardening nactivity nwith na nsmall ngroup
nof nadolescents nin nan ninpatient nmental nhealth nsetting. nOne nof nthe nparticipants
nbecomes nself-absorbed nand ndistractible nand nhas nbursts nof nenergy nthat nare
naffecting nthe nother nmembers nof nthe ngroup. nWhat nis nthe nOTR®'s nMOST
nappropriate nresponse?
A. n"How nare nwe ndoing nwith nour npot ntransfer? nWe nneed nto nget nthis ndone
ntoday."
B. n"Can nI nspeak nto nyou nprivately nabout nyour nbehavior nduring nthe ngroup nwork?"
C. n"You nseem nto nbe ndistracting nthe nother nmembers nof nthe ngroup."
D. n"Please nstop nwhatever nit nis nyou nare ndoing." n- ncorrect nanswers n-A.
When na nclient nstarts nshows nsymptoms nof na nmanic nepisode, nparticularly
nemotional nand ncognitive nsymptoms, nit nis nbest nto nhelp nthe nclient nengage nin
ngoal-directed naction.
A nCOTA® nis nworking ntoward nservice ncompetency nfor nadaptive nfeeding
nequipment ninstruction. nHow nwould nthe nOTR® nBEST nestablish nservice
ncompetency?
A. nReview nthe nCOTA's ndocumentation nof nmultiple npatients nwhose nfeeding
nimpairments nwarranted nadaptive nequipment, nthen ndiscuss nthe noutcomes nwith nthe
nCOTA.
B. nObserve nthe nCOTA neducate nclients non nhow nto nuse nadaptive nfeeding
nequipment nto nensure nthat nthe nCOTA ninstructs nclients nin nthe nsame nmanner nas
nwould nthe nOTR.
C. nCompare noutcomes nby nrating nthe nsame nclient's nperformance nwith nthe
nadaptive nfeeding nequipment nat nthe nsame nlevel nof nindependence.
D. nCollect ninformation nfrom nvarious nsources, nincluding nother ntherapists, nthe
nCOTA's ndocumentation, nand nfeedback nfrom nclients, nto ndetermine ncompetency. n-
ncorrect nanswers n-C.
,Service ncompetency nis ndefined nas n"the nprocess nof nteaching, ntraining, nand
nevaluating nin nwhich nthe nOTR® ndetermines nthat nthe nCOTA® nperforms ntasks nin
nthe nsame nway nthat nthe nOTR nwould nand nachieves nthe nsame noutcomes"
n(Youngstrom, n2009, np. n943). nIn nthis nexample, nboth nthe nCOTA nand nOTR
nobserve nthe nsame nclient nperforming na ntask nand nrate nthat nperformance nin na
nsimilar nmanner. nComparing noutcomes nhelps nto nensure nclients nreceive ncare nof
nequal nquality.
An nOTR® nis nperforming nfamily ntraining nwith na nclient nwith nStage nVI namyotrophic
nlateral nsclerosis n(ALS) nwho nis npreparing nfor ndischarge nhome. nWhich npoints nare
nMOST nIMPORTANT nfor nthe nOTR® nto naddress?
A. nAdaptive nequipment nfor nADLs nand nhow nto nset nup nthe nclient nwith nALS nto
nperform nas nindependently nas npossible
B. nEnergy nconservation nfor nthe nclient nwith nALS, nas nwell nas ncaregiver nsupport
nresources nto nprevent nburnout
C. nPositioning nto nprevent nskin nbreakdown, na nROM nhome nprogram, nand nsafe
nbed nmobility nand ntransfers
D. nTherapeutic nexercises nfor nthe nclient nwith nALS nand nhow ncaregivers ncan nuse
nproper nbody nmechanics n- ncorrect nanswers n-C.
A nclient nwith nend-stage nALS nwould nlikely nbe ntotally ndependent nfor nall nADL nand
nmobility, nthus nrequiring nmajor ncaregiver nassistance nfor nbed nmobility nand
ntransfers. nAn nOTR® ninstructing nfamily nmembers nin nthese ntechniques nwould
neducate nthem non nbody nmechanics. nPositioning nand nROM nat nthis nstage nare
nimportant nto nprevent ndiscomfort, ncontractures, nand nskin nbreakdown.
A nCOTA® nworking non nan ninpatient nrehabilitation nunit nhas nhad ntwo npatients nfall
nin nthe npast nmonth. nThe nsupervising nOTR® nhas nconcerns nabout nthe nCOTA®'s
nsafety nawareness nduring ncertain ninterventions. nWhich napproach nis nthe nBEST nfor
nthe nOTR® nto ntake nto naddress nthese nconcerns?
A. nSpeak nwith nthe nrehabilitation nmanager nabout npossible ndisciplinary naction.
B. nReview nthe ndocumentation nof nthe ntwo npatients nwho nfell nand ndiscuss ntheir
ncases nthoroughly nwith nthe nCOTA® nto ndetermine nthe ncauses nof nthe nfalls.
C. nAsk nthe nCOTA® nwhether nmore nthorough nsupervision nis nneeded nand nthen
nproceed nto nprovide nclose nsupervision.
D. nCollaborate nwith nthe nCOTA® nto ndetermine npotential ncauses nof nthe nfalls nand
nprovide ndirect nsupervision nwith nmore ndeliberate nfeedback. n- ncorrect nanswers n-D.
Supervision nthat nis nmore nfrequent nmay nbe nnecessary nwhen nthe nOTR®, nCOTA®,
nor nboth ndetermine nthat nadditional nsupervision nis nneeded nto nensure nsafe nand
neffective ndelivery nof noccupational ntherapy nservices. nIn nthis ncase, nsafety nis na
nmajor nconcern, nand ntherefore nadditional nsupervision nmay nbe nnecessary.
An nOTR® nevaluates na nclient nwho nhas njust nentered nthe nplateau nphase nof
nGuillain-Barré nsyndrome n(GBS). nWhen nassessing nADLs, nwhat nwould nthe nOTR
nmost nlikely nexpect nto nsee?
, A. nBowel nand nbladder nincontinence, nwhich naffects nskin nintegrity nand ntoileting
nroutine
B. nUnilateral nsensory nimpairments, nwhich naffect nfine nmotor ntasks nsuch nas noral
ncare
C. nEdema nand nweakness nin nthe nlower nextremities, nwhich nmakes nbathing nand
ndressing ndifficult
D. nShoulder nweakness, nwhich nresults nin ndecreased nindependence nin nupper-body
nbathing nand ndressing n- ncorrect nanswers n-C.
In nthe nplateau nphase, nsymptoms nare nat ntheir nmost nsevere: nEdema nand
nweakness nare ncommon nsymptoms nwith nGBS. nBecause nsymptoms nare ntypically
nsymmetrical nand nascend nfrom ndistal nto nproximal, nbilateral nsymptoms nwould
nlikely naffect nlower-body nself-care.
An nOTR® nis nassessing nbed nmobility nwith na nclient nwith nGuillain-Barré nsyndrome
n(GBS) n2 nweeks ninto nthe nplateau nphase. nThe npatient nreports ndizziness non
nperforming nsupine nto nsit nat nthe nedge nof nthe nbed nand nbegins nto nlie nback ndown.
nWhat nstep nis nMOST nappropriate nfor nthe nOTR® nto ntake?
A. nEncourage nthe npatient nto nremain nupright nand nallow nfor nthe ndizziness nto
nsubside nby nperforming nsimple nROM nexercises nto npromote ncirculation.
B. nAssist nthe npatient nback nto nbed nsafely, nlower nthe nhead nof nthe nbed, nand
nmonitor nvitals, ncomparing nthe ncurrent nblood npressure nwith nthe nresting nblood
npressure.
C. nAssist nthe npatient nback nto nbed nslowly, nelevate nthe nlower nextremities, nand
nimmediately nsearch nfor nthe nnurse nto nassess nthe npatient.
D. nEducate nthe npatient non nthe nimportance nof nsitting nupright nand nout nof nbed nto
nhelp nregulate nthe nnervous nsystem nand nprevent nsecondary ncomplications. n-
ncorrect nanswers n-B.
People nwith nGBS nare nat nrisk nfor nautonomic nnervous nsystem ndysfunction nsuch
nas npostural nhypotension nor nexperiencing na nsignificant ndrop nin nsystolic nblood
npressure non nmoving nfrom na nhorizontal nto nan nupright nposition. nCommon namong
npeople nwho nendure na nprolonged ntime nin nbed, nthe nchange nin nposition ncauses
nblood nto nrush nto nthe nlower nextremities, nresulting nin nfeelings nof nlightheadedness
nor ndizziness. nThe nbest noption nis nto nslowly nand ncarefully nassist nthe npatient nback
nto nsupine, nmonitor nblood npressure, nposition nthe npatient nin nTrendelenberg n(lower
nthe nhead nof nthe nbed nand nraise nthe nlower nextremities), nrecheck nblood npressure,
nand nthen nalert nnursing, nleaving nthe ncall nlight nin nreach.
With nwhich nsituation nwould na nchild nwith nautism nspectrum ndisorder n(ASD) nlikely
nhave ndifficulty?
A. nRemembering na nparent's nwork ntelephone nnumber
B. nCopying nhomework nassignments ninto na ndaily nplanner
C. nBeing nable nto npick nup non na npeer's nnonverbal ncues nduring na nconversation
D. nGiving na nspeech non npreferred ntopic n- ncorrect nanswers n-C.
