What is Occupational Therapy?

- In life we perform many occupations or everyday activities
- These occupations can be broken into 4 main areas: self care, work, leisure and rest
- Occupational Therapists promote health and well-being through engagement in occupation
- Sometimes people with disabilities, injuries, conditions or other barriers have difficulties performing their everyday activities
- Occupational Therapists help people to maintain, restore or improve function, so they can continue to perform their meaningful occupations
- Occupational Therapists use specific assessments and activity analysis to assess someone's capacity to perform occupations
- Occupational Therapists use activity based therapy and specialised interventions to help people to maintain, restore or improve function
- Occupational Therapists adapt the activity and modify the environment to allow for participation and engagement in preferred occupations

- The science behind Occupational Therapy is called Occupational Science
- Occupational Science is the science of human occupation or activity
- Occupational Therapists are also trained in biological, rehabilitation, physical, social and behavioural sciences
- Occupational Therapy assessment and interventions are evidence based
- Assessment and interventions may address sensory, perceptual, neuro-musculoskeletal, motor, cognitive and/or psychosocial performance components

- The activity may need to be adapted to help the person to perform the activity
- The environment may need to be modified to help the person to perform an activity
- Assistive technology or aid may be required by the person to perform an activity
- Assistance from others may be required by the person to perform an activity
- Occupational Therapists are specialists in adapting the activity, modifying the environment, prescibing assistive technology and organising appropriate assistance from others