For this assignment I chose to interview CTRS Anica Herrera, who is not only a Recreational Therapist, but also a Child Life Specialist at Phoenix Children’s Hospital. I have the privilege of working closely with Anica now and then as a Child Life Assistant, but have never really spoke with her regarding Recreational Therapy or her specific experiences that led her to where she is today. I was excited to sit down with Anica one on one and pick her brain a bit about her journey as a CTRS and learn what she had to share with me.
Anica attended college at San Jose State in California. She was originally an Occupational Therapy major, but after speaking with two of her friends who were Recreation majors, she considered switching. Occupational Therapy was a harder program and it had a long waiting list to get into, plus she saw how much her friends were enjoying the Recreation program, so she decided to switch majors.
Certificate Number: 49672 Anica J. Herrera City & State: Chandler, AZ Initial Certification: 11/04/2002 Annual Expiration Date: 12/31/2009
Recertification Due Date: 11/01/2012
Anica has a Bachelor of Applied Science degree in Recreation with a concentration in Therapy. She is also a Certified Child Life Specialist.
Anica’s career path is very unique because she was able to get experience in so many different areas of Therapeutic Recreation. When she was in college, her program required that she have 1000 hours of experience in Recreation, which was broken down into different areas and populations such as Psychiatry, Older adults, Developmentally delayed, etc. She spent many hours working at the VA with the Recreational Therapist there, as well as in a Development Center with people who had developmental delays, and with the City of Santa Clair working in the Therapeutic Recreation Department. She also did a fourteen week unpaid internship at Packard Children’s Hospital working under the CTRS there. Since her supervisor there was also a Certified Child Life Specialist, Anica’s internship at Packard Children’s also counted as a Child Life internship, and Anica was then qualified to sit for the Child Life Exam, which she passed along with her CTRS exam.
After Anica graduated and now held certifications in both Therapeutic Recreation and Child Life, she was hired on part-time at Packard Children’s Hospital as a Child Life Specialist, at the time in charge of running the playrooms there. She was also working full-time with the City of Santa Clair in the Therapeutic Recreation Department doing with responsibilities such as programming and event planning. After two years of doing this, Anica moved to Arizona and was hired full-time at Arizona State Hospital as a Recreational Therapist. Her job responsibilities there consisted of teaching basic skills to the patients there, such as scheduling their time, doing their laundry, and preparing meals. Anica says she hated that job, and after a year-and-a-half she got a job at Phoenix Children’s Hospital working both as a Child Life Specialist and a Recreational Therapist. She has been at Phoenix Children’s for just over five years now and very much enjoys what she does.
Her current job responsibilities include working with pediatric rehab patients who suffer from a variety of different injuries and disabilities, including neurological disorders, traumatic brain injuries, burns, spinal cord injuries, neuromuscular disorders, and orthopedic injuries such as fractures. She evaluates their play, evaluates their current skill level and determines what goals to set, she develops activities to practice new skills so the patients can achieve those goals and build new ones. She also provides leisure education and awareness, meaning she helps patients and their families come up with leisure activities that are beneficial to the patient and can help them rehabilitate.
Phoenix Children’s Hospital is located at 1919 E. Thomas Road in Phoenix, Arizona. The phone number there is 602-546-1000. Phoenix Children’s currently does not offer a Therapeutic Recreation Internship, and Anica said there are currently no programs offered to patients through the Therapeutic Recreation Department. They only offer Anica’s services to pediatric inpatients, and when the patients are discharged, they must go see someone else for these services if they are still necessary. Anica currently does not belong to any professional organizations but she does attend Therapeutic Recreation conferences when she can and if they are offered close by.
Anica said her main reason to enter the field of Therapeutic Recreation was that it seemed like a really fun job, one that she would enjoy doing. She also said she loves how versatile the profession is. The main components that you learn about Therapeutic Recreation can be used in a limitless number of jobs. There are so many different areas to work in and so many different populations to work with. Anica estimated that only 5-6% of Recreational Therapists work in pediatric hospitals, and she knows that if she one day were to become bored with her job or it ceased to be fun or challenging, she could take her credentials and expertise and do anything from event planning to working in schools or for the City. She is currently very happy in her position and loves the population she works with, but says it is nice to know there are other options out there for her if she ever chose to make a change.
I really enjoyed getting a closer look at the field of Therapeutic Recreation and definitely learned a lot just through this interview. I have known Anica for over a year but I have never known about her career path or even some of the responsibilities she has in her position at the hospital. It was also interesting to learn about all of the options that are available to Recreational Therapists and Anica is obviously very passionate about her field, which made me very excited to learn more about it! This interview experience was very educational for me and very enjoyable as well!
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