What does an Occupational Therapist do?
Occupational therapists help people of all ages regain, develop, or master everyday skills in order to live independent, productive, and satisfying lives. Occupational therapists assess clients with physical and mental challenges in order to develop activities of daily living (ADL) that work best for those clients. For a client with a physical disability, the first focus is on performing critical daily routines, such as dressing, grooming, bathing, and eating. Once these skills are mastered, a program is then built around the skills needed to perform tasks such as participating in education, caring for a home and family, or seeking and maintaining employment. For a client with mental illness, the goals are also based on the ability to function independently. In treating mental or emotional challenges, the occupational therapy program focuses on areas such as managing time, working productively with others, and enjoying leisure. Which qualities or personal traits are useful in practicin
An Occupational Therapist does similiar type therapy rehabilitation that a Physical Therapist does except that the Occupational Therapist’s goal is to help you to become better able to cope with chores and such in everyday situations. Examples would be to help you be able to dress yourself, take a bath or shower, cook, shop, do laundry, etc. Things you did before your injury or illness. These exercises or approaches are different according to your problem. For instance my sister is currently in Pulmonary Rehab. The Occupational Therapist has her do breathing exercises, teaches her energy conservation techniques (when to stop and rest, pursed lip breathing, etc), and she does stretching exercises, and such. Then the Physical Therapist takes over and has her walking on a teadmill, riding a bicycle, and doing a bicycle type exercise but for the arms (upper body). The Physical Therapist exercises are very intense (they push, push, push), but the Occupational Therapist is more layed back an
The occupational therapist is concerned with helping clients to discover and achieve a balance between work, leisure, and self care that results in a satisfying level of independence and competency in all three areas of life. When examining the various components of a client’s lifestyle, each of the components if usually referred to as an occupation. The occupational therapist will conduct what is commonly referred to as an intervention in an effort to assist the client in making changes and developing qualities that will improve the condition of each occupation. Occupational therapists also seek to identify potential habits within each occupation that could result in compromising the health of the individual, or have a real potential of leading to injury or possibly a permanent disability. While all areas of life include some degree of risk, the role of the OT is to help the client see those risks clearly, and move toward behavior patterns that help to minimize the risk. Individuals w
An occupational therapist provides for the development, improvement, or restoration of sensori-motor, oral motor, perceptual, neuromuscular, and/or psychosocial components of a child’s performance. OT’s focus on the child’s performance within the areas of self-care, play or leisure, and schoolwork activities.
All you Occupational Therapy students out there, how many times have you been asked what exactly does an Occupational Therapist do? Chances are you have had to answer this question many times. Occupational Therapy is a complex field and one that is not as widely understood as, for example, Physical Therapy. I found two articles that try to give insight into the Occupational Therapy field. The article, What Is Occupational Therapy Anyways?, found on The Sensory Processing Disorder Resource Center website is a great article that provides the fundamental explanation as to what Occupational Therapy is: “It is the job of Occupational Therapy to provide intervention which will help you regain function, maintain level of functioning, or make accommodations for any deficits you may be experiencing.” The article also goes into explaining the differences between the more familiar Physical Therapy to the lesser known Occupational Therapy. “One of the most frequent questions every Occupational The
