What will OT look like for my child?
OT looks different for everyone.
Occupational Therapists support people to engage in the things they want to, need to and are expected to do (WFOT, 2012). Occupational Therapists are skilled in enabling people to participate in their meaningful occupations through modification of the occupation or the environment (WFOT, 2012). With respect to the Paediatric population we work across many areas of functioning including: self care (dressing, showering, toileting, mealtimes, sleep and puberty), fine and gross motor, social skills, emotional regulation, play, attention and sensory processing. Through education and coaching we build the capacity of parents and caregivers as well as others in a child's care team to maximise the independence and participation of a child with delays or a disability.
Infants & Toddlers
Our paediatric Occupational Therapy services for infants and toddlers focuses on promoting healthy development. We work with families in natural environments such as their homes and childcare. We support you to understand developmental milestones and provide individualised care and support to achieve your family centred goals. We strongly value parent coaching and capacity building to support families to continue progress outside of therapy sessions.
Preschool & Kinder
Our paediatric Occupational Therapy services for preschool aged children focuses on promoting independence and social-emotional development. We provide visits at home, kinder and childcares depending on the identified goals. Therapy is heavily grounded in play as this is the 'work' of the child. We can also support your child to develop the foundation skills required to support a positive transition to school.
School age - adolescence
Our paediatric Occupational Therapy services for school aged children and adolescents focuses on supporting children to thrive in their self care, academic and leisure activities. We achieve this through a collaborative approach with the young person and family, recognising your child's inherent strengths and existing supports. We provide assessments and interventions to maximise independence and support participation in meaningful pursuits. We are able to support your child to navigate transition to school, transition to high school as well as navigating puberty and the teenage years.