[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2016\/06\/what-is-occupational-therapy\/#Article","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2016\/06\/what-is-occupational-therapy\/","headline":"What Is Occupational Therapy?","name":"What Is Occupational Therapy?","description":"Occupational therapy helps people suffering from disability regain their independence and learn daily skills.","datePublished":"2016-06-10","dateModified":"2023-03-09","author":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.upmc.com\/services\/rehab","name":"UPMC Rehabilitation Institute","url":"https:\/\/www.upmc.com\/services\/rehab","sameAs":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/upmc-rehabilitation-institute\/","parentOrganization":"UPMC"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"UPMC HealthBeat","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/UPMC-HealthBeat-Logo.png","url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/UPMC-HealthBeat-Logo.png","width":600,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/GettyImages-1167794762.jpg","url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/GettyImages-1167794762.jpg","height":325,"width":754},"url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2016\/06\/what-is-occupational-therapy\/","about":["Health Topics A-Z","Rehabilitation"],"wordCount":541,"keywords":["back to school","occupational therapy","OT","rehabilitation","therapy"],"articleBody":"Occupational therapy\u00a0(OT) helps people maximize their engagement in, and independence with, daily activities \u2013 often following a life-changing event, such as a new medical diagnosis or workplace injury.Your occupational therapist’s goal is simple: to help you regain your independence through self-care, returning to work, or getting back to the leisure activities you enjoy \u2013 depending on your situation and needs. OT gives individuals \u201cthe skills for the job of living.”\u201cOccupational therapists are professionals trained to look at the individual as a whole person, working collaboratively to identify their goals in order to maximize the person’s ability to participate in activities that the individual wants or is expected to perform,” says Megan Driscoll, assistant program director, outpatient occupational therapy, and program director, chronic pain management.Understanding Occupational TherapyYour occupational therapist will help you learn new ways to perform daily activities, including:Self-care management: bathing, dressing, eating, and grooming.Home management: bill paying, gardening, cleaning, cooking, and home and automobile maintenance.Health and wellness management: medication, rest and sleep, stress management, and coping with ongoing illness or injury (such as chronic pain or stroke).Socialization and communication: leisure, technology use.Community mobility: driving or navigating public transportation; school\/education.Adapting to low vision challenges.Managing physical, cognitive, and functional changes following a stroke or brain injury.Occupational therapists evaluate a patient’s daily living task performance by understanding how people interact with their home, work, and school environments. OTs develop a personalized care plan and determine if adaptive or ergonomic or technology would help improve your function.\u201cOccupational therapy is the science of living,” says Holly Stants, MS, OTR\/L, SCLV, SLVT, low vision rehab team leader. “We can promote an individual’s capacity to learn and see transformation every day in the low-vision clinic. We provide an avenue of hope: light in the dark.”Occupational therapists also fit, fabricate, and help people learn how to properly use adaptive equipment, such as reaching devices, low-vision technology devices, transfer equipment, dressing aides, and splints\/orthotics.Who Benefits from Occupational Therapy?People of any age benefit from occupational therapy. People with trauma, injury, stroke, cognitive changes, or low vision can also lead more fulfilling lives with the help of an OT.\u201cOccupational therapists appreciate the physical, neurological, emotional, and functional challenges a person faces following a life-changing event, such as a stroke,” says Madeline Williamson, MS, OTR\/L, CPAM neurological rehab team leader. “As a result, we join in a person’s success when they discover a new way to perform any meaningful activity, such as cooking a meal, caring for grandchildren, and returning to work.”Injuries or conditions that could benefit from occupational therapy include:Neurological injury (stroke, spinal cord injury,\u00a0traumatic brain injury).Workplace injury.Orthopaedic injury.Automobile accident.Chronic pain.Hand and upper extremity injuries.Low vision\/vision impairment.Cancer.Challenges of aging.Chronic illnesses, including diabetes, arthritis, Parkinson’s, multiple sclerosis, and Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.Your therapist and doctor will work with you to develop a tailored program based on your needs and goals for the future. Learn more by visiting the occupational therapy webpage at UPMC Rehabilitation Institute.Editor's Note: This article was originally published on June 10, 2016, and was last reviewed on March 31, 2022."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"2016","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2016\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"06","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2016\/\/06\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"What Is Occupational Therapy?","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2016\/06\/what-is-occupational-therapy\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]