Occupational Therapist (OT, OTR/L) Recruiters
Healthcare Headhunters recruits healthcare professionals for employers. No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
This is what we do all day: recruit healthcare professionals.
You need an Occupational Therapist who can assess functional barriers and make sound decisions for your specific caseload.
No postings. No stacks of resumes. No chasing. You interview a short list.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
Need someone now? Call 305-306-4829.
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What happens next
- We review your role, responsibilities and location.
- Ivan or a senior team member will reach out soon.
- You meet a focused shortlist when qualified candidates fit the agreed search.
- Fees.
- No upfront fee. Pay only if you hire, under the signed agreement.
- Exclusivity.
- Set out in the signed client agreement.
- Confidentiality.
- We agree the brief before outreach. This is not a promise of absolute anonymity.
- No hire.
- No hire means no fee on standard searches.
- OT
- OTR/L
- Staff OT
What does an open seat cost you every week?
An open role costs you more than the recruiting fee. Someone covers the work, waits for care, or stops a service. We ask what is falling behind and who is carrying it. Use your own figures to compare the cost of waiting with the cost of hiring.
The seat is costing you every week.
Overtime, diverted patients, a stretched team and a schedule held together by favors.
The posting brought the wrong people.
Applicants arrive, but the person who has done this exact work is employed and not looking.
You are the one chasing.
Screening calls, no-shows and follow-ups land on the desk of someone with a facility to run.
What does this hire really come down to?
An OT may assess dressing, grooming, transfers, cognition, routines, and equipment needs during one shift. They document findings, train patients in functional tasks, update goals, and communicate with the clinicians or caregivers involved in the next step. Your hire needs relevant experience, not just an OT title.
Ask candidates how an evaluation changes what they do that day. A useful answer covers the functional task, the barrier observed, the goal selected, and what they report to the team. General statements about helping patients regain independence do not show whether the therapist can make decisions under the conditions of your setting.
The same license supports very different jobs. Hospital OTs may complete short functional assessments and contribute to discharge discussions. Skilled nursing OTs may work across changing functional goals and care plans. School and pediatric clinicians may focus on participation, development, and routines.
We arrange locum tenens, travel and contract coverage on request. Credentialing, licensing and malpractice coverage are confirmed per engagement before anyone starts.
What do we check before you see anyone?
NBCOT OTR and state license. We verify current NBCOT OTR certification and ask about the active license for your state. Your organization completes final credentialing and confirms practice eligibility before the therapist starts. ADL assessment and training. We ask candidates how they evaluate bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, transfers, or other daily tasks.
- We ask how they identify a barrier, set a functional goal, and record progress when a patient does not advance as expected.
- Upper extremity rehabilitation. We discuss experience with shoulder, elbow, wrist, and hand limitations. Candidates should explain the functional impact they assessed, the work they performed, and how they recognized when a case needed knowledge beyond their background.
- Caseload and setting fit. We review age groups, common diagnoses, visit structure, documentation duties, and team contacts. This separates direct responsibility from a brief student rotation, observation, or occasional coverage assignment.
- Pediatric, hand, or neuro focus. These can be valuable backgrounds when they match your patient population. We ask what populations, functional goals, and workday decisions the therapist handled, because one focus does not automatically translate to another.
- Documentation and communication. We ask how the therapist documents functional findings, goal changes, progress, and barriers. We also discuss how they share concerns with therapy colleagues, nursing, physicians, teachers, caregivers, or other contacts in the setting.
Where do we find them, and why would they move?
We recruit from hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, schools, outpatient clinics, pediatric clinics, and ACOTE-accredited programs. Each pool can produce a different mix of ADL, upper extremity, pediatric, neuro, and team-based experience. An OT may explore a move for a different patient mix, a chance to deepen a specialty, relocation, scheduling needs, or room to develop professionally.
We ask what changed and what the candidate wants next. Interest in a conversation alone is not enough.
Which mistakes stall the search?
A common mistake is hiring from years of experience alone. Ask which functional evaluations, ADL training, upper extremity cases, and discharge-related discussions the therapist handled personally. Another is treating pediatric, hand, and neuro backgrounds as interchangeable. A strong clinician in one area may need support before taking on another caseload.
Skipping documentation questions. Ask how the candidate records goals, progress, barriers, and communications when the plan changes during the episode of care.
How would we run the search for this opening?
Tell us the setting, age range, common functional problems, documentation work, and team contacts. We screen credentials, work history, stated reasons for moving, and fit with the duties described. Use realistic scenarios from your setting during finalist interviews. We screen against the work you assign.
Describe the actual caseload
Specify whether ADL work, upper extremity rehabilitation, or pediatric, hand, or neuro experience matters most.
Review screened candidates
You review relevant background and decide which candidates should meet your team.
Complete your final review
Your team completes its own credentialing, reference process, and clinical assessment before making a hiring decision.
Where this search connects
Rehabilitation Therapy & Audiology
SpecialtyOccupational Therapist, Skilled Nursing & Post-Acute
Role in a settingOccupational Therapist (OT, OTR/L), Children's Hospitals
Role in a settingOccupational Therapist (OT, OTR/L), Rehab Hospitals & Outpatient Therapy
Role in a settingPhysical Therapist (PT, DPT)
Related rolePhysical Therapist Assistant (PTA)
Related roleCertified Occupational Therapy Assistant (COTA)
Related roleSpeech-Language Pathologist (SLP, Speech Therapist)
Related roleNational median annual wage. SOC 29-1122, Occupational Therapists.
The published occupation matches Occupational Therapist (OT, OTR/L). BLS wages are not a specific employer offer.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025-05, released 2026-05-15. View source. See the full guide.
Open roles
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How does the placement fee work?
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement. Outpatient OTs may see more upper extremity work.
Is NBCOT OTR status enough for this role?
No: we screen for current NBCOT OTR certification and an active state license. Your organization still completes credentialing and confirms that the therapist can practice in your location.
How should we interview an OT for ADL work?
Ask the candidate to walk through an ADL assessment from observation through documentation. Listen for a specific barrier, a functional goal, the training selected, and how they communicated progress or concerns.
Do we need a hand, pediatric, or neuro specialist?
That depends on the work assigned after hire. A specialist can bring useful depth, but you should ask whether the person can also cover your general OT caseload and documentation duties.
How do we discuss an OT candidate's reasons for changing jobs?
We ask what led them to search and what the counteroffer changes. You can then discuss the real decision points, such as schedule, patient population, specialty work, supervision, relocation, or compensation.
What should you send us about this role?
Send us the role, where the person will work and what needs to change with this hire. We will ask about the work, not just the title. Share any license or schedule limits that could rule someone out before we begin the search.
Tell us what your OT will assess, document, and discuss with the team on a typical shift. We will screen for that work before you spend time interviewing.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
What happens next
- We review your role, responsibilities and location.
- Ivan or a senior team member will reach out soon.
- You meet a focused shortlist when qualified candidates fit the agreed search.
- Fees.
- No upfront fee. Pay only if you hire, under the signed agreement.
- Exclusivity.
- Set out in the signed client agreement.
- Confidentiality.
- We agree the brief before outreach. This is not a promise of absolute anonymity.
- No hire.
- No hire means no fee on standard searches.
Which other positions in this family should you consider?
Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA) · Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant (COTA)
What do you get at each step of the search?
Our process for every search: calibrate the seat with you, map the market, research the real people, reach out to each one personally, qualify them in live conversation, then hand you a short list with a written brief on each person and support through the offer.
Search Calibration
You get an agreed brief: the work, reporting line, credentials, schedule, and offer you can make.
Market Mapping
You get a search aimed at relevant backgrounds, including people working now who have not applied.
Professional Contact Intelligence
We check appropriate ways to reach the people identified for your search. You do not have to chase them yourself.
Persistent Personalized Outreach
We explain your actual job and follow up with people who may consider a conversation.
Live Candidate Qualification
You see people we have spoken with about the work, interest, and practical fit, not an unread resume pile.
Candidate Intelligence and Process Support
You get a written brief and support through interviews and offer discussions. You make the hiring decision.
How long will it take to see a short list?
That depends on the job, schedule, available people, and what your employer can offer. We discuss those constraints before outreach and update you as candidates respond. We do not promise a fixed shortlist date. We check the job brief before arranging interviews. Tell us which parts of the role you can change.
What if a candidate receives a counteroffer?
We ask why the person wants to move and discuss competing decisions before an offer. A counteroffer can still change their choice. Keep the duties and offer clear rather than assuming more money settles every concern. Tell us early if parts of your offer cannot change, so the candidate hears it from us first.
What are the replacement terms?
We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement. Ask us to walk through those terms before you sign, so you know how a replacement would work for your opening and who would start it.
What do we not do in a standard permanent search?
We do not bill standard contingency search by the hour or simply repost your job. Temporary coverage is a separate arrangement. Any retainer or different engagement must be agreed, not assumed. Tell us early if you need coverage while the permanent search runs.