What Is Occupational Therapy and Who Might Need It?

Occupational therapy - a treatment that focuses on helping people achieve independence in all areas of their lives - can provide children with various needs with positive, fun activities to improve their cognitive, physical, and motor skills and enhance their self esteem and sense of accomplishment.
Some people may think that occupational therapy is only for adults; children, after all, do not have occupations. But a child's main job is playing and learning, and an occupational therapist can evaluate a child's skills for play activities, school performance, and activities of daily living and compare them to what is developmentally appropriate for an age group.
According to the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), in addition to dealing with an individual's physical well-being, occupational therapy practitioners address psychological, social, and environmental factors that may hinder an individual's functioning in different ways. This unique approach makes occupational therapy a vital part of health care for some children.
So who might use an occupational therapy practitioner? According to AOTA, kids with the following medical problems may benefit from occupational therapy:

birth injuries or birth defects
sensory processing/integrative disorders
traumatic injuries (brain or spinal cord)
learning problems
autism
pervasive developmental disorders
juvenile rheumatoid arthritis
mental health or behavioral problems
broken bones or other injuries
developmental delays
post-surgical conditions
burns
spina bifida
traumatic amputations
cancer
severe hand injuries
multiple sclerosis, cerebal palsy and other chronic illnessesOne of the activities that occupational therapists can address to meet children's needs is working on fine motor skills so that kids can grasp and release toys and develop good handwriting skills. Occupational therapists also address hand-eye coordination to improve play skills, such as hitting a target, batting a ball, or copying from a blackboard.
An occupational therapist can also:

help children with severe developmental delays to learn some basic tasks, such as bathing, getting dressed, brushing their teeth, and feeding themselves
help kids with behavioral disorders learn anger-management techniques (i.e., instead of hitting others or acting out, the children would learn positive ways to deal with anger, such as writing about feelings or participating in a physical activity)
teach children with physical disabilities the coordination skills required to feed themselves, use a computer, or increase the speed and legibility of their handwriting
evaluate each child's needs for specialized equipment, such as wheelchairs, splints, bathing seats, or dressing devicesHow Can I Find Care for My Child?

If you think your child may benefit from occupational therapy, talk to your child's doctor, who can usually refer you to individual specialists who are best suited to your child's condition. Your child's school nurse or guidance counselor may also be able to recommend specialists based on your child's academic or social performance.
You can also consult your local yellow pages or contact a nearby hospital or rehabilitation center for referrals. A list of specialists may also be available through your state's occupational therapy association.
However you find an occupational therapist for your child, make sure that your health insurance company covers the program you select.

For more information on this topic go to


http://kidshealth.org/parent/system/ill/occupational_therapy_p2.html

This is a super useful post. A lot of people don't know where to start. Thank you.