I am interested in knowing the work of an occupational therapist. What specific steps do they do?

Question

I am interested in knowing the work of an occupational therapist. What specific steps do they do?

Answer 1

An Occupational Therapist is a health professional with at least a 4-year college degree that specializes in evaluation and treatment of various diagnoses that limit functional independence.

Recovery after an injury to your hand, wrist, elbow or shoulder can be difficult. An Occupational Therapist can help you return to your work, sporting and home activities.

After receiving your doctor’s order the Occupational Therapist will complete a comprehensive evaluation of your:

Range of motion

Strength

Sensation

Coordination

Skin and/or wound condition

Pain

Swelling

Functional postures and body mechanics

Your Occupational Therapist will develop an unique, individual treatment program that may include:

Range of motion exercises

Strengthening exercises

Exercises, massage and or use of modalities to decrease pain and swelling

Splinting to support your injury

Wound and skin care

Workstation assessment/ job site evaluations

Functional ergonomics

Treatment will also include education about the cause and anatomy of your injury, and often includes continuation of a home program to continue your progress. Finally, your participation in your treatment will bring about the best result.

The occupational therapist may work in a number of settings. Hospitals often employ an occupational therapist to assist persons who must learn to cope with a change in health or a loss of an ability, such as sight or hearing. Nursing homes and home health care also make use of this profession, often as a means of helping people adjust to changes in an occupation within the comfort of the client’s living space.

Some schools and corporations also employ occupational therapists, providing support and access to essential life skills to students and employees. In all instances, the goal of the occupational therapist is to assist persons in getting the most out of life, equipping people with important skills and mindsets that make it possible to enhance the experience of living.

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.

Answer 2

Occupational therapists must be licensed, requiring a master’s degree in occupational therapy

There are OT assistants (COTA) that generlaly have an associates degfree

bascially an OT works on anything taht you occupy yourself with-

from play skills to work skills to self help skills

including fine mntor/hand strenghth

writing, cutting, eating, dressing, attention to task

job type skills

they also work on Sensory Integration Disorder where the body is over or under responsive (to visual, motion, sound, touch, etc)