Occupational Therapy

Occupational Therapy (OT) helps people live more productive lives. It enables people with disabilities to carry out essential activities, with the aim of maintaining or improving independence.
 
Occupation means any way in which people spend their time from personal, domestic and mobility related activities (washing, dressing, toileting, mobility) to productivity (paid or unpaid work, housework, education); to leisure (games, sports, hobbies, social activities).

Examples of essential activities may include:

• Managing personal care, eg getting to the bathroom and transferring on/off toilet.
• Safe mobility around your home to enable you to prepare meals, get in/out of bed, manage the steps and stairs.
• Enabling an individual to take up or stay in paid or unpaid work. 
• Enabling your carer to care for you.
• Enabling people to recover or regain skills that have been lost through an episode of illness or trauma. 

OTs could help, or provide information about:

• Raising the height of the bed/chair so that standing is much easier if a person has stiff, painful hips and knees.
• Making a home safer for getting around by the installation, for instance, of hand rails and ramps.
• Reducing anxiety and helping people raise their confidence about getting around or manage their disability.
• Information on ways of obtaining appropriate support and helping people to connect to other relevant agencies.
• Assisting carers to continue to maintain their caring responsibilities.
• Assessing and providing treatment to those people who have become unable to carry out activities and daily living.
• Assessment for major adaptations and recommendations with regard to financially assessed grants.
• Assessment and provision of standard wheelchairs, specialist wheelchairs and seating.
• Advice and information for people who are able and wanting to fund their own equipment or adaptations.

For further information telephone one of the following:

Or write to us using the contact details on the right hand side