What is Pediatric Occupational Therapy?
Pediatric Occupational Therapists work in hospitals, schools, homes, and private clinics with children of all ages and varying levels of disability. Occupational Therapists (OTs) help children gain independence and promote development of fine motor skills, sensory motor skills, and visual motor skills that children need to function and socialize in their home, school, play, and community environments. In hospitals, services focus on rehabilitating children, allowing them to return to their daily routines at their highest level of function. In the school districts, services focus on facilitating or promoting fine motor, sensory, and visual motor skills in order to access the educational environment. At home, services focus on promoting functional and developmental skills with family members in the home environment. Private clinics vary on the therapeutic focus but generally incorporate development of fine motor skills, sensory motor skills, and visual motor skills that children need to function and socialize in their home, school, play, and community environments.
Children may benefit from pediatric occupational therapy for:
This blog does NOT provide specialized evaluation and/or treatment. To receive specialized occupational therapy services you must refer your child for services. Referrals may be completed by contacting your doctor or a teacher who works closely with your child. If your child is not yet school age, access to publicly funded early intervention depends on state law, and some states might require a family co-pay or health insurance subsidy. If you have any further questions about services, please feel free to contact me on this site or email me directly at [email protected].
Pediatric Occupational Therapists work in hospitals, schools, homes, and private clinics with children of all ages and varying levels of disability. Occupational Therapists (OTs) help children gain independence and promote development of fine motor skills, sensory motor skills, and visual motor skills that children need to function and socialize in their home, school, play, and community environments. In hospitals, services focus on rehabilitating children, allowing them to return to their daily routines at their highest level of function. In the school districts, services focus on facilitating or promoting fine motor, sensory, and visual motor skills in order to access the educational environment. At home, services focus on promoting functional and developmental skills with family members in the home environment. Private clinics vary on the therapeutic focus but generally incorporate development of fine motor skills, sensory motor skills, and visual motor skills that children need to function and socialize in their home, school, play, and community environments.
Children may benefit from pediatric occupational therapy for:
- Self-care skills including feeding, dressing, and grooming
- Hand strengthening and coordination skills required for activities such as cutting with scissors, coloring, and writing, buttoning, using feeding utensils, etc.
- Sensory-motor processing and integration
- Upper extremity (shoulder, arm and hand) splinting & serial casting
- Recommendation, training, and use of adaptive equipment
- Neurodevelopmental treatment
- Visual motor and handwriting skills
This blog does NOT provide specialized evaluation and/or treatment. To receive specialized occupational therapy services you must refer your child for services. Referrals may be completed by contacting your doctor or a teacher who works closely with your child. If your child is not yet school age, access to publicly funded early intervention depends on state law, and some states might require a family co-pay or health insurance subsidy. If you have any further questions about services, please feel free to contact me on this site or email me directly at [email protected].