How Innovative Technology Supports OTA Education 

Occupational therapy assistant (OTA) students need to understand more than therapeutic techniques. They also study how anatomy, movement, health conditions, environments, and daily activities interact to affect a person’s ability to participate in meaningful occupations. Educational technology can make some of these concepts more interactive. At Stanbridge University, OTA students have access to resources including virtual reality technology, SynDaver Synthetic Cadavers, therapy skills labs, and other hands-on learning environments that complement classroom instruction and supervised fieldwork.¹ ² 

Anatomy and Occupational Therapy  

One important topic in occupational therapy education that is often explored through technology is human anatomy. Consider activities such as getting dressed, preparing a meal, writing, transferring into a chair, or reaching for an object. Each requires coordinated movement involving joints, muscles, and other anatomical structures. Therefore, to help patients with these tasks, OTA students need to understand how the body produces movement and how injury, disease, or dysfunction can affect occupational performance. 

However, learning anatomy can be challenging because students are learning three-dimensional structures from information that may initially appear in two-dimensional textbooks or diagrams. To help bridge this gap, universities like Stanbridge use technology including virtual reality and synthetic cadavers to allow students to better explore these structures. 

Virtual Reality 

Virtual reality and augmented reality provide students with unique opportunities to learn about human anatomy. 

Stanbridge University’s Virtual Reality Lab uses zSpace augmented and virtual reality technology to display interactive three-dimensional models of anatomy and biology. Students can rotate models, examine structures from different perspectives, and explore anatomical relationships in greater detail.¹ 

For an OTA student studying movement, this can provide additional visual context. Instead of viewing a joint from only one angle, students can examine how anatomical structures relate spatially. They can then connect those observations with concepts discussed in Movement Anatomy and other coursework. 

Virtual reality does not replace anatomy instruction or hands-on laboratory learning. Rather, it provides another way to visualize concepts that students are learning across the curriculum. 

SynDaver Synthetic Cadavers 

Stanbridge also uses SynDaver Synthetic Cadavers as part of its anatomy education resources. These full-body synthetic models include structures such as bones, joints, muscles, tendons, organs, blood vessels, and components of the nervous system, giving students a hands-on way to examine how anatomical structures relate to one another.¹  

Rather than relying only on diagrams or rigid anatomical models, students can physically examine and identify structures while developing a three-dimensional understanding of the body. SynDaver’s synthetic tissues are designed to mimic properties of living human tissue, providing another way to study anatomy without the preservation chemicals associated with traditional human cadavers. The models are also reusable, allowing them to support repeated anatomy instruction over time.  

For OTA students, this tactile approach can complement the visual experience of virtual reality. A student might first use VR to rotate and explore a three-dimensional anatomical structure, then use a SynDaver to examine those structures and their relationships through hands-on study. Together, these experiences can help students connect anatomical structure with movement and function, which becomes especially relevant when considering how an injury or health condition may affect a person’s ability to complete everyday activities. 

Connecting Anatomy With Everyday Activities 

While studying anatomy is important, the larger goal of OTA education is understanding function of the body. 

For example, knowing which muscles contribute to shoulder movement becomes more clinically meaningful when considering a person who has difficulty reaching overhead to dress, retrieve an object from a cabinet, or complete a work task. Likewise, understanding the anatomy of the hand can provide context for therapeutic activities involving grasp, fine motor control, self-care, or other functional tasks. 

Stanbridge’s Movement Anatomy Lab specifically connects anatomical structures with muscles that produce movement and asks students to analyze movement in both function and dysfunction.³ 

This connection between body structure, movement, and occupation is particularly important in occupational therapy education. 

OTA Therapy Skills Labs 

Beyond anatomy, students also need opportunities to develop intervention techniques and apply occupational therapy concepts that help individuals participate more meaningfully in daily life. 

Stanbridge’s OTA curriculum includes three dedicated OTA laboratory courses in addition to its anatomy and physiology laboratory coursework. The program contains more than 200 laboratory hours across these courses.² 

The university’s therapy learning environments include equipment and resources that allow students to explore areas such as therapeutic activity, mobility, adaptive equipment, positioning, and other aspects of occupational therapy practice.⁴ This creates a progression from understanding the body to considering how occupational therapy interventions can support function. 

For example, a student may study how an injury affects movement in the classroom and then explore how an activity, adaptation, piece of equipment, or therapeutic strategy could support a client’s goals in a skills lab. 

How Does Technology Support Clinical Reasoning? 

Technology is most useful when it helps students think through clinical problems. OTA practice requires students to connect several pieces of information: 

• What does the client want or need to do? 
• What is limiting participation? 
• How does the health condition affect function? 
• Which environmental factors need to be considered? 
• What intervention has the occupational therapist established? 
• How is the client responding? 

Anatomy technology can contribute to this process by helping students visualize why movement may be limited. Therapy labs can then provide opportunities to explore intervention techniques and adaptations. As students progress, they begin connecting these concepts. 

Stanbridge’s OTA program learning outcomes emphasize critical thinking, clinical reasoning, communication, occupational therapy knowledge, intervention techniques, and entry-level clinical proficiency.⁵ Technology is a powerful educational resource for developing those competencies, alongside faculty instruction, practice, feedback, and fieldwork. 

Preparing for Fieldwork 

Fieldwork allows students to apply their knowledge and skills with real clients in occupational therapy practice environments under appropriate supervision. By the time students reach these experiences, they have already encountered occupational therapy concepts through theory courses and hands-on laboratory learning. 

The progression can look broadly like this:

Learning Environment	Primary Role
Classroom	Develop theoretical and occupational therapy knowledge
VR and Anatomy Resources	Explore anatomy, movement, and spatial relationships
Therapy Skills Labs	Practice intervention techniques and apply concepts
Fieldwork	Apply appropriate learning in supervised practice settings

Educational Technology at Stanbridge University 

Stanbridge University’s Associate of Occupational Science in Occupational Therapy Assistant program combines classroom instruction, laboratory learning, educational technology, and supervised fieldwork.⁴ 

OTA students have access to resources that include: 

• Virtual Reality technology 
• SynDaver Synthetic Cadavers 
• Therapy Skills Labs 
• Anatomy and physiology laboratory learning 
• Occupational therapy equipment 
• Adaptive equipment and mobility devices¹ ⁴ 

The Virtual Reality Lab uses zSpace technology to provide interactive 3D anatomy and biology models, while synthetic cadavers provide another method for examining human anatomy.¹ The curriculum then connects anatomical study with OTA-specific courses in areas such as physical dysfunction, pediatrics, psychosocial dysfunction, and occupational therapy intervention.² 

The OTA program consists of 112.5 quarter credit hours and is designed to be completed in approximately 22–23 months, including holidays and breaks.² 

Stanbridge University’s OTA program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) at the Orange County and Los Angeles campuses.⁷ 

Combining Technology and Hands-On Learning 

No single educational technology can replicate everything an OTA student needs to learn. 

A virtual model can help a student visualize anatomy, but it cannot replace learning how movement affects occupational performance. A synthetic cadaver can provide hands-on anatomical exploration, but it cannot replace practicing therapeutic activities. A therapy lab can support skills development, but it cannot replace supervised fieldwork. The value comes from connecting these experiences. 

For OTA students, that means progressing from understanding how the body is structured, to examining how it moves, to considering how changes in function affect everyday activities, and finally applying appropriate occupational therapy knowledge during fieldwork. Innovative technology can support that progression by giving students additional ways to see, explore, and interact with concepts that may otherwise remain abstract. 

If you’re exploring occupational therapy assistant education, explore Stanbridge University’s Occupational Therapy Assistant program or contact Stanbridge University.  

Frequently Asked Questions 

Footnotes 

¹ Stanbridge University, Innovation & Technology https://www.stanbridge.edu/innovation-technology 

² Stanbridge University Catalog, Occupational Therapy Assistant Program Overview https://catalog.stanbridge.edu/programs/ota-program/ota-program-overview/ 

³ Stanbridge University Catalog, All Course Descriptions – OTA 1005 Movement Anatomy Lab https://catalog.stanbridge.edu/all-course-descriptions/ 

⁴ Stanbridge University, Occupational Therapy Assistant Program https://www.stanbridge.edu/program/ota 

⁵ Stanbridge University Catalog, Occupational Therapy Assistant General Information https://catalog.stanbridge.edu/programs/ota-program/ota-general-information/ 

⁶ National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy, Certification https://www.nbcot.org/get-certified 

⁷ Stanbridge University Catalog, Legal Disclosures – Occupational Therapy Assistant Accreditation and Certification https://catalog.stanbridge.edu/home/legal-statements/