When and why do you need OT consult?
Occupational therapy practitioners provide services enabling people to organize, manage, and perform their daily occupations and activities. Occupational therapy services support a child's participation in activities of daily living, education, work, play, leisure, and social interactions. Occupational Therapy is an important part of overcoming Autism, Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, Learning difficulty, Developmental delay, Cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, And other neurological disorders.
Occupational therapists' expertise lies in their knowledge of occupation and how engaging in occupations can be used to affect human performance and the effects of disease and disability. When working with clients, occupational therapists direct their effort toward helping clients perform. Performance changes are directed to support engagement in meaningful occupations that subsequently affect health, well-being, and life satisfaction.
Providing occupational therapy intervention may involve the therapeutic use of occupation as a "means" or method of changing performance. The "end" of the occupational therapy intervention process occurs with the client's improved engagement in meaningful occupation.
Both terms, occupation, and activity, are used by occupational therapists to describe participation in daily life pursuits. Occupations are generally viewed as activities having unique meaning and purpose in a person's life. Occupations are central to a person's identity and competence, influencing how one spends time and makes decisions. The term activity describes a general class of human actions that are goal-directed. A person may participate in activities to achieve a goal, but these activities do not assume a place of central importance or meaning for the person.
Occupational therapists value occupation and activity and recognize their importance and influence on health and wellbeing.
The Process of Occupational Therapy
Occupational therapists focus on the following occupations: activities of daily living, instrumental activities of daily living, education, leisure, play, social participation, and work. The occupational therapy service delivery process includes evaluation, intervention, and outcomes. The occupational therapist must understand the client's priorities and problems engaging in occupations and activities during the evaluation.
Evaluation and intervention address factors that influence occupational performance, including Performance skills (e.g., motor, process, and communication/ interaction skills), Performance patterns (e.g., as habits, routines, and roles), Context (e.g., physical and social environments), Activity demands (e.g., required actions and body functions), and Client factors (e.g., neuromuscular, sensory, visual, perceptual, digestive, cardiovascular, and integumentary systems)
Evaluation, Intervention, and Outcome
Many professions use the process of evaluating, intervening, and targeting intervention outcomes that are outlined in the Framework. However, occupational therapy's focus on occupation throughout the process makes the profession's application and use of the process unique. The occupational therapy service delivery process begins by evaluating the client's occupational needs, problems, and concerns.
Understanding the client as an occupational human being for whom access and participation in meaningful and productive activities are central to health and well-being is a perspective that is unique to occupational therapy. Problems and concerns addressed in evaluation and intervention are also framed uniquely from an occupational perspective, based on occupational therapy theories, and defined as problems or risks in occupational performance.
During the intervention, the focus remains on occupation, and efforts are directed toward fostering improved engagement in occupations. A variety of therapeutic activities, including engagement in actual occupations and daily life activities, are used in the intervention.
Occupational Therapy at Playstreet
Occupational therapists serve children, families, caregivers, and educational staff in various programs and settings. Regardless of where the evaluation and intervention services are provided, the ultimate outcome is to enable the child to participate in activities of daily living, education, work, play, leisure, and social interactions.
