What is an Occupational
Therapist?
Health Care Professionals who enable people to lead a more
productive, satisfying, and independent life.
Who do Occupational
Therapists work with?
Children
Adolescents
Adults
Old age (seniors)
Where do Occupational
Therapists work?
• Hospitals
• Schools/Special
schools
• Mental
Health Facilities
• Armed
forces
• Old
Homes
• Private
Clinics
• Rehabilitation
Centers
• Community
Health Centers
• Insurance
Companies
• Client
Homes
• Client
Work Places
THE ROLE OF OCCUPATIONAL
THERAPIST FOR PEOPLE
INCREASE AND MAINTAIN INDEPENDENCE IN ACTIVITIES OF DAILY
LIVING (ADL’s)
INCREASE MOBILITY & CO-ORDINATION
Occupational therapy treatment focuses on helping people achieve independence in all areas of their lives. OT can help kids with various needs improve their cognitive, physical, and motor skills and enhance their self-esteem and sense of accomplishment.
Occupational therapy treatment focuses on helping people achieve independence in all areas of their lives. OT can help kids with various needs improve their cognitive, physical, and motor skills and enhance their self-esteem and sense of accomplishment.
Some people may think that occupational therapy is only for
adults; kids, after all, do not have occupations. But a child's main job is
playing and learning, and occupational therapists can evaluate kids' skills for
playing, school performance, and daily activities and compare them with what is developmentally appropriate for that
age group.
An occupational therapist (OT) is a health professional who
is responsible for helping patients regain their ability to perform daily
living and work activities. His or her patients have generally lost these
abilities because of mental, physical or developmentally or emotionally
disabling conditions. An occupational therapist is one member of a
rehabilitation team that may also include a physical therapist, speech
pathologist, psychologist and social worker.
Who Might Need Occupational Therapy
According to the these medical problems might benefit from
OT:
Birth injuries or birth defects
Sensory processing disorders
Traumatic injuries (brain or spinal cord)
Learning problems
Autism/pervasive developmental disorders
Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis
Mental health or behavioral problems
Broken bones or other orthopedic injuries
Developmental delays
post-surgical conditions
Burns
Spina bifida
Traumatic amputations
Cancer
Severe hand injuries
Multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, and other chronic
illnesses
How Physical Therapy and OT Differ
Although both physical and occupational therapy help
improves kids' quality of life, there are differences. Physical therapy (PT)
deals with pain, strength, joint range of motion, endurance, and gross motor
functioning, whereas OT deals more with fine motor skills, visual-perceptual
skills, cognitive skills, and sensory-processing deficits.
