Some neurological conditions and injuries can result in children having difficulty communicating, playing, and interacting with the world around them. A paediatric occupational therapist is a specialist who assesses the individual needs of each child and prepares strategies and activities to help them overcome their difficulties.
What can an occupational therapist help a child with?
The areas that paediatric occupational therapy can help with include:
– Movement: In particular, occupational therapy can help with fine motor skills. These are movements such as writing or cutting with scissors that involve small muscles in the hands and fingers.
– Cognitive skills: These include learning, paying attention, problem-solving, and memory.
– Social and emotional skills: These are skills which children need to be able to interact with their peers, for example by playing.
– Self-care: These are the activities required for day-to-day life, such as eating and getting dressed.
In combination with a positive home environment and parental support, paediatric occupational therapy can improve children’s school performance, confidence, ability to play well with others, and their independence.
How to know if your child needs occupational therapy
In most cases, a child will be referred to a paediatric occupational therapist by their doctor, or the doctor will suggest it in response to an injury or the child having one of the following conditions:
– ADHD,
– autism spectrum disorder,
– cerebral palsy,
– down syndrome, or
– sensory processing disorder.
You might also wish to contact a therapist if your child is behind the developmental expectations for their age, if they have trouble interacting with their environment, for example avoiding certain textures, and if they often go back to behaving in old ways even after they have learned new ones.
The first visit to a child occupational therapist will always be an evaluation of the child’s needs. This allows the therapist to learn about what difficulties your child is experiencing and devise strategies to help them develop quickly and safely.
To do this, the therapist will observe your child’s behaviour using a combination of approaches. These can include activities such as writing and colouring, eating different kinds of foods, and playing or solving puzzles with beads and blocks. It also involves some questions for you about your child’s habits and any concerning behaviour that you have noticed.
How the therapy works
In each subsequent session, the child will focus on completing a range of activities which have been designed with the child’s specific needs and age in mind. Some examples of the kinds of activities they can expect to do are writing, putting on socks and shoes, and playing games.
The duration of each session can vary, as can how many sessions are needed and how often they take place. However, the therapist will update you about the progress your child is making and will let you know how much more time they will need to achieve their goals.
Risks of paediatric occupational therapy
The therapy is not dangerous for children, although they may experience some anxiety, frustration, and confusion. In some circumstances, their muscles may get a little sore too.
