What is Occupational Therapy?
Occupational Therapy (OT) is a science degree-based, health and social care profession, regulated by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). Occupational Therapists are concerned with promoting health and wellbeing through occupation. The main focus of Occupational Therapy is to enable people to participate in the activities of everyday life. Occupational Therapists achieve this outcome by working with people and communities to enhance their ability to engage in the occupations they want to, need to, or are expected to do, or by modifying the occupation or the environment to better support their occupational engagement. (WFOT 2012Hyperlink Here). In Occupational Therapy, occupations refer to the everyday activities that we do as individuals, in families and with communities to occupy time and bring meaning and purpose to life.
Cambs OT are pleased to be able to offer Occupational Therapy across Cambridgeshire and the wider area. Unfortunately we are not able to offer Occupational Therapy in Hertfordshire due to current NHS employment.
Who would benefit from Occupational Therapy
If you are having difficulty doing the things you need to and want to do then you may well benefit from Occupational Therapy. You may well have developed a health condition that means you cannot do the things you used to be able to do, you may have had an accident or you may have a lifelong disability.
As an Occupational Therapist I would work with you on – for example:
• An Occupational Therapy assessment of your strengths and challenges through talking to you and observing you completing tasks.
• Recommendations as to how to realistically maximize your level of independence.
• Rehabilitation relating to physical, cognitive, psychological and social difficulties.
• Devise a graded rehabilitation programme to support you in developing the skills you need to make life easier and improve your quality of life.
• Learn ways to compensate for any health condition / disability, this could include the provision of equipment and basic adaptations.
• Work together with you to look at having an effective routine that supports you to get the most out of each day, whilst looking after yourself.
Why Choose Occupational Therapy?
An occupational therapist will consider all your needs - physical, psychological, social and environmental to enable you to achieve your full potential and optimise independence. This support can make a significant difference to ones life, giving a renewed sense of purpose, opening up new horizons, and changing the way one feels about the future. (College of Occupational Therapists, 2011). An Occupational Therapist will work with you to provide practical advice to maximise your strengths and overcome any challenges. Occupational Therapy does not provide a “one size fits all” approach and everything is tailored to you so that you get the most out of life.