Occupational therapy services are designed to help you participate more fully in work, family and social settings; recover from injury or disability; develop or regain skills; and improve self-esteem and communication.
Occupational therapists work in a variety of settings with people of all ages. They may help people who have had strokes, brain injuries, spinal cord injuries or amputations. They also provide occupational therapy (OT) to children who have developmental disabilities, sensory impairments or emotional difficulties that interfere with the ability to participate fully in life.
Occupational therapy begins with a patient intake process, which includes completing a health history and meeting with members of the occupational therapy team to discuss personal goals. Careful planning is necessary for this type of therapy, so patients can be referred to any other services needed to support them.
Occupational therapists teach people how to do everyday tasks. For example, they help patients who have lost vision or hearing learn how to cook safely and independently. Or, after a stroke or brain injury, patients might be guided through hand exercises to help them move their arm again.
In some cases, the patient will do the activity with the occupational therapist. In others, patients practice by themselves. Occupational therapists are creative, patient teachers who motivate their clients to reach goals that may seem impossible at first.
For Keith McWilliams, getting people back behind the wheel is kind of his thing.
