As a licensed Home Health Care provider, PHCS can offer Occupational Therapy services to clients in their homes. In our experience, many people have a pretty good understanding of what Physical Therapy is, but they are unclear of what Occupational Therapy is and how it can benefit them. In this article, we give you an understanding of what Occupational Therapy is and how it can benefit people, especially home health care clients.
The American Occupational Therapy Association’s explanation of Occupation Therapy is very concise, and is as follows:
Occupational therapy practitioners ask, “What matters to you?” not, “What’s the matter with you?”
In its simplest terms, occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants help people across the lifespan participate in the things they want and need to do through the therapeutic use of everyday activities (occupations). Common occupational therapy interventions include helping children with disabilities to participate fully in school and social situations, helping people recovering from injury to regain skills, and providing supports for older adults experiencing physical and cognitive changes. Occupational therapy services typically include:
- an individualized evaluation, during which the client/family and occupational therapist determine the person’s goals,
- customized intervention to improve the person’s ability to perform daily activities and reach the goals, and
- an outcomes evaluation to ensure that the goals are being met and/or make changes to the intervention plan.
Occupational therapy services may include comprehensive evaluations of the client’s home and other environments (e.g., workplace, school), recommendations for adaptive equipment and training in its use, and guidance and education for family members and caregivers. Occupational therapy practitioners have a holistic perspective, in which the focus is on adapting the environment to fit the person, and the person is an integral part of the therapy team.
In home health care, Occupational Therapy is prescribed to help clients that are disabled, injured, or experiencing physical and cognitive changes to be able to effectively perform everyday tasks in their home. An Occupational Therapist will visit your home to perform an assessment/evaluation. The initial assessment will include an assessment of you and your home environment. They will then develop an Occupational Therapy Plan of Care with the assistance of your Physician. The Therapist will make scheduled visits to your home to provide Occupational Therapy. The Therapist will keep track of your progress toward your goal, and make any adjustments as needed. Once your goals are met, there will be a final discharge evaluation/assessment. Ultimately, after therapy, with your new Occupation Therapy training and skills, you should be able to perform the everyday tasks that you used to take for granted.
The American Occupational Therapy Association has a number of handouts on their website that have Occupational Therapy tips for Patients and Caregivers. Click the link below to visit this section of their site:
Occupational Therapy Tips for Clients and Caregivers!
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