Occupational Therapist cover letter example. Annotated, paragraph by paragraph.
Priya Raman is applying for the Occupational Therapist, Inpatient Rehabilitation role at Lamna Healthcare. The letter goes with their occupational therapist resume example — same person, same results — so you can see how the two work together.
By Nazir Elmurodov · Updated
Occupational Therapist cover letter
Priya Raman
Raleigh, NC · priya.raman@email.com · (919) 555-0136
Denise Carver
Occupational Therapist, Inpatient Rehabilitation, Lamna Healthcare
Dear Denise Carver,
I'm applying for the Occupational Therapist position on Lamna Healthcare's inpatient rehabilitation unit. I'm an OTR/L licensed in North Carolina with 5 years in acute care and inpatient rehab, and at Crabtree Valley Rehabilitation Hospital I treat a caseload of 8–10 patients a day after stroke, spinal cord injury, brain injury and orthopedic surgery.
The work I'm proudest of is getting families ready for discharge. I noticed caregivers were going home unsure how to help with transfers, so I started a structured caregiver training session in the week before discharge. On our unit survey, family-reported confidence with transfers at discharge rose from 58% to 81%.
I write measurable goals, lead ADL retraining and neuromuscular re-education and coordinate discharge planning with case management, PT and speech-language pathology. Before inpatient rehab, I worked in acute care at Neuse River Medical Center, evaluating 10–12 patients a day and added a MoCA cognitive screen to evaluations for older adults. I document in Epic the same day and follow Medicare documentation guidelines.
I'd welcome the chance to meet your rehab team and hear how you plan care for your patients. Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Priya Raman
What each paragraph does
Paragraph 1: Credential, license, settings and caseload in the opening.
Paragraph 2: One outcome, with the problem she noticed and what she changed.
Paragraph 3: Treatment skills, team coordination, acute care background and documentation.
Paragraph 4: Closes on the team and its patients.
Start from Priya's resume
Opens the matching resume in the editor with every section filled in. Swap in your own details.
Sample letter. Names, companies and figures are illustrative.
/ Tips
Tips for your occupational therapist cover letter.
01
Lead with credential and setting
Name OTR/L or your license status and the settings you've worked in, especially if you're changing settings.
02
Pick one outcome
Goals met, safe discharges or caregiver confidence show what your treatment changes for patients.
03
Show you work as a team
Rehab units want therapists who coordinate with PT, speech, nursing and case management.
Write yours from your own resume
LaunchCV drafts a cover letter from your resume and the job post, then you edit it. Included in every paid plan.
/ Questions
Cover letter FAQ.
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Do occupational therapists need a cover letter?
Many employers don't require one, but a short letter helps when you're changing settings, applying to a specialty program or graduating with mostly fieldwork experience.
What should a new graduate OT write about?
Your ACOTE-accredited program, NBCOT and license status and your Level II fieldwork: the settings, the caseload you reached and one patient outcome you contributed to.