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Ernest Health
Weslaco, Texas

Occupational Therapist - Per Diem

Occupational TherapistIncludes weekendsPer Diem

Compensation

Pay not listed

The week · per this posting

Ask the employer about the pay range, the work setting, call expectations and time off.

Posted 27m ago · Verified live

Job Description

Occupational Therapist – Per Diem - Weslaco, Texas

Join our world-class team of driven, passionate healthcare professionals who are focused on service excellence and providing top quality care!

Weslaco Regional Rehabilitation Hospital in Weslaco, Texas provides compassionate inpatient rehabilitative care to the Rio Grande Valley community. As a specialized rehabilitation hospital, we help patients recover from strokes, neurological injuries, orthopedic surgeries, and other disabling conditions through intensive, individualized therapy programs.

Our team of rehabilitation experts – including physiatrists, therapists, and nursing staff – works closely with each patient to regain strength, mobility, and functional skills, using the latest therapy techniques and equipment. The hospital offers a welcoming, family-oriented atmosphere where Spanish and English are spoken to best serve our diverse patient population.

Joint Commission-accredited and part of an award-winning regional network, Weslaco Regional Rehabilitation Hospital takes pride in delivering high-quality, culturally sensitive care that helps patients achieve remarkable recoveries.

Weekday and Weekend hours available

What You Bring

A passion for patient care, a team player, motivating and collaborating therapist to assist patients to reach the best outcome.

  • Graduate Degree from an accredited program in Occupational Therapy.
  • Current State Occupational Therapist License.

Current CPR

As a participating hospital of Ernest Health, we offer robust recognition, wellness, and retention programs. These programs focus on enhancing the employees’ work experience, recognizing, and celebrating achievements.

We also encourage employees to share their work experience through “My Ernest Journey” and through our Engagement Survey, where our approach is “You Spoke, We Listened”. These platforms provide additional avenues for employees to give feedback about their work experience and share what is important to them.

Qualifications

Required Skills

Current licensure as an Occupational Therapist required

Basic Life Support/CPR Card Required

One year of experience in the care of patients in rehabilitation hospital setting preferred.

Additional Qualifications/Skills

  • Knowledge of clinical operations and procedures.
  • Demonstrates an understanding of treatment costs and financial support as they relate to quality and efficiency.
  • Demonstrates competency in the provision of care according to established standards
  • Demonstrates appropriate application of age specific standards, policies and procedures and guidelines in caring for pediatric, adolescent, adult, and geriatric patients
  • Demonstrates general computer skills including: data entry, word processing, email, and record management.
  • Leadership skills in delegating, organizing, and educating coworkers and staff.
  • Effective organizational and time management skills.
  • Effective written and verbal communication skills.
  • Ability to maintain proper levels of confidentiality.
  • Ability to work closely and professionally with others.
  • Ability to maintain quality, safety, and/or infection control standards.

Responsibilities

Evaluates patients and helps them improve basic motor functions and reasoning abilities, but also compensate for permanent loss of function by teaching them to perform tasks in their daily living and working environments.

These patients may have conditions that are mentally, physically, developmentally, or emotionally disabling. May also assist patients in selecting appropriate adaptive equipment and assistive devices. Integrates the hospital’s mission and “Guiding Principles” into daily practice.

Qualifications

Education
Master's degree (postgraduate degree)

Certifications

BLS

Key Skills

Patient evaluationMotor function improvement

Occupational Therapist Career Context

In Texas, the Occupational Therapy weighted monthly median benchmark on WeekdayDoc is ~$91k (170 salary observations; 2,209 listings), vs ~$97k nationally (4,358 salary observations; 24,442 listings). Monthly aggregates cover 2026-01-01 through 2026-10-01; these are not the modal's selected comparable-job medians.

The cost-of-living index for Texas is 97.1 (US average = 100; BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)). 57.7% of Texas clinicians report burnout symptoms in WeekdayDoc's Burnout Index (2026-01 data).

Of the 50 active Occupational Therapy listings this role was benchmarked against, 2% are remote, 38% have no call, 64% require no weekends.

Occupational Therapy pay on WeekdayDoc is up 1.3% vs. the prior quarter (through Sep 2026).

Location & Logistics

Texas has no state income tax, which can significantly increase take-home pay compared to high-tax states.

Top contract/1099 Occupational Therapist Jobs

37 matches · ranked by pay

Salary Distribution36 jobs · 28 employers

17
<$115k
3
$115k-135k
8
$135k-155k
5
$155k-175k
3
$175k+

Annual compensation range

Benefits & Perks32 jobs · 28 employers

401k / retirement match
94%
CME allowance
59% this job
Sign-on bonus
47%
Loan repayment
16%
Relocation assistance
9%

Share of similar jobs offering each benefit

#1

Occupational Therapist III EX

UCSF · Oakland, California

$67.06-$90.53/hr
#2

Occupational Therapist

Ironside Human Resources · Fairfield, California

$75-$90/hr
#3

Occupational Therapist II EX

$64.05-$86.19/hr
#4

Virtual Occupational Therapist

$82.50 per hour
+ 35 more · ranked by pay

Work-life snapshot

median 4.8this job 3.0
Better work-life than 20% of Occupational Therapy listings

Listing-based score, 0–10, across 9,491 comparable listings. Shaded area = the share scoring below this one.

  • Includes weekends

Living in Weslaco

Typical 3-bedroom home value
$184k
Typical market rent
$1,115/mo
Residents’ average commute
24 min
Metro price indexU.S. average = 100
85.9
State income tax
None
Sources & methodology

Sources: Zillow home values (Aug 2026), Zillow market rents (Aug 2026), U.S. Census ACS 2024 five-year.

BEA 2024 · McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX metro prices. Housing figures are city-level.

City-level figures. Not a cost-of-living guarantee.

Ernest Health logo

About Ernest Health

Hospitals and Health Care
Mesquite, Texas
501-1,000 employees

Benefits & Perks

Employee Assistance Program
Wellness Program
Earned Time Off
Clinical Career Ladder bonus program
Therapy Preceptor bonus program
Continuing education opportunities