Occupational Therapy

Rothko

Hi, I might undergoing occupational therapy soon.

I'm just wondering if anyone here has undergone it and if so, what were you experiences with it and do you think you benefited from it? Also, what exactly did it involve?

JuliusCaesar

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occupational_therapy

Occupational therapy, often called OT, is the use of treatments to develop, recover, or maintain the daily living and work skills of people with a physical, mental or developmental condition.[1] Occupational therapy is a client-centered practice that places a premium on the progress towards the client’s goals.[2] Occupational therapy interventions focus on adapting the environment, modifying the task, teaching the skill, and educating the client/family in order to increase participation in and performance of daily activities, particularly those that are meaningful to the client.

Valmont

So would someone see an occupational therapist if they wanted to improve their job performance or had a specific professional hurdle to get over?

JuliusCaesar

Valmont - OTs are part of the Multi-Disciplinary Team in Mental Health, and also in General Medicine, depending on their specialism. In general, they supply people with aids for everyday functioning eg if they have a problem with their arm and can lift a teapot, the OT will measure and supply a gadget. (Sorry if any OTs reading this!)

In Mental Health, they will often try to discover what kinds of skills, abilities, and activities the person has/could have to enhance their wellbeing, their self-esteem, their sense of belonging etc. They will often run therapy groups in day hospitals and on in-patient units, alone or in conjunction with other members of the MDT: psychiatrists, social workers, nurses, etc.

There is a big skill overlap in MDTs with each profession having their own emphasis or approach, and many members will have undergone therapy or counselling training in addition to their core profession.


You might be thinking of an Occupational Psychologist? A different profession altogether.

Piriz

it is a reality and a shame that many healthcare professionals believe that OT's only give pieces of equipment to people with physical difficulties. However, in some settings issuing aids and equipment makes up a large part of their role (unfortunately).

OT's provide cognitive and physical rehabilitation in brain injury, focus on recovery of upper limb function and core strength and wheelchair skills in spinal injury, can train a person to return home and live independently or return to work after a serious illness or disability, can train a person to walk and carry out their daily activities with a prosthetic limb (or two). An OT can specify adaptations in a persons home for them to have increased functional mobility and safety after say an illness or disability. OT's work with all age groups including children with intellectual disability teaching them to carry out tasks like self care independently or build their social skills and social engagement. OT's work with people with arthritis or respiratory problems to improve their quality of life... the list goes on and on...

I hope this has given a bit more of a window into what Occupational Therapists do in physical settings.