Occupational therapy job Los Angeles provides help to people who struggle to engage with basic life skills and self-care. It might be from severe illness, injury, pain, or disability. So, OTs teach people how to adapt to things better so they can stand for themselves. This includes:
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Bathing and getting dressed
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Doing office work
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Doing laundry and cleaning the house
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Taking part in leisure activities
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Eating without the help of others
Occupational therapists work with people of all ages i.e. children to adults. Their ultimate goal is to make the lives of such people easier. Moreover, OTs also offer job training for the job of living. If you want to hire one for your child or family, you first need to know what they are capable of.
Services provided by occupational therapists
Occupational therapists provide services based on performing appropriate assessments and evaluation of the patient’s developmental medical history. Input from both the patients and family is essential in developing the most effective and appropriate treatment plan. All these can improve the patient’s ability to perform different tasks. The following are the services provided by OTs:
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Life skills / self-care
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Motor functions
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Reasoning
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Visual-motor integration
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Problem-solving
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Focus
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Perception
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Strength
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Vocational supports
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Dexterity
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Hand-eye coordination
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Sensory integration disorders
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Pediatric specialty
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Hand use and handwriting, etc
Benefits of occupational therapists
The following are some of the benefits you can get from an occupational therapist:
1) Overcome the struggles of day-to-day life
OTs help patients in overcoming their struggles of day-to-day life. For most senior citizens, taking part in normal daily activities like eating, bathing, and walking can become an exhausting task. They often get frustrated and give up halfway. Moreover, they also fail to take part in other aspects of life such as family outings, social gatherings, and hobbies. This often leads to feelings of depression and isolation.
However, having an occupational therapist can change the lives of senior citizens. OTs can teach senior patients rehabilitation techniques and exercises that make completing daily activities much easier. This includes activities like eating, dressing, and bathing. They also help them to improve their strength, fine and basic motor skills, dexterity, and range of motion.
2) Prevent falls
According to 1 in 4 Americans report, people over the age of 65 will fall every 11 seconds, and every 19 seconds someone dies from falling. Though falls may seem a minor issue, these statistics show how dangerous falls can be to senior citizens.
Just the thought of your parent falling with no one around is too scary. Fortunately, you can ease your mind by hiring an occupational therapist for your parents. They are well aware of the commonness of falls among senior patients. Hence, OTs can teach your parents the ways to prevent falls. Further, they can teach your parents about muscle-building exercises and balancing. This will keep their bodies alert and strong for the upcoming years.
3) Memory rehabilitation
Most people think that occupational therapy only provides physical benefits. The truth is occupational therapy also provides several mental benefits. The first thing the OTs do when they meet with patients is evaluate the patient’s cognitive and physical abilities.
For example, if your parent has dementia, the OTs will asses the weakness and strength areas of your parent. Then, they will create a treatment plan that involves strengthening the weak areas and maintaining the strong areas.
All senior citizens have some degree of memory loss. The following are some of the ways occupational therapists help senior patients in regaining their memory:
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Engaging in memory-enhancing activities. This includes matching games, puzzles, and crossword puzzles.
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Placing stop signs on gates or front doors for senior patients who easily get wander and disoriented
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Teaching non-defensive methods to caregivers to deal with patients whose personality changes frequently.