A jOurney Through the decades: 1940's

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The ERA project we have just completed was the most entertaining and informative group project I have ever participated in. I really enjoyed seeing how OT has been impacted by societal preferences, technological trends and major events. I was most intrigued by the discussion of the 1940's. While WWII was raging on there were leaps and bounds being made by women in the workforce. The Rosie the Riveter campaign increased women in the workforce from 27% to 37%!
During this time OT "school" lasted 18 months. However, the military needed help and did not have the resources or the time. Thus, the two week OT course was created. I can't even imagine how these therapists felt going into the profession with only two weeks of school! Through this demand arose one of the most influential occupational therapists of the decade, Winifred Conrick Kahmann. In WWII she served as the Chief of the Occupational Therapy Branch of the Reconditioning Division of the Office of the Surgeon General. She was in charge of recruitment, education and assignment of 900 occupational therapists. She was also the first registered OT to become the AOTA president in 1947. All in all, Kahmann made a huge impact on the education and progression of the profession in the 1940's.

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