What is occupational therapy?
A child’s primary “occupations” are to be a student, friend, playmate and to be developing independence in their everyday life. Paediatric occupational therapists are trained to identify when a child is experiencing difficulty with these occupations, the cause of that difficulty and to implement suitable intervention to assist them to perform to the best of their ability. Paediatric occupational therapists do this by:
- assisting children to build new skills
- modifying tasks to enable children to be more successful
- modifying the environment to better support a child’s learning
Qualia therapists are trained to find your child’s strengths and develop an individualised therapy plan to suit your child’s needs.
Occupational therapy is a client-centred health profession concerned with promoting health and well being through occupation. The primary goal of occupational therapy is to enable people to participate in the activities of everyday life. Occupational therapists achieve this outcome by working with people and communities to enhance their ability to engage in the occupations they want to, need to, or are expected to do, or by modifying the occupation or the environment to better support their occupational engagement.
– OT Australia Website
Does my child need occupational therapy?
What is it like to work with Qualia?
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1
Information Gathering
Once you are booked in, you will be asked to complete a questionnaire and will speak with one of our intake coordinators. Your therapist may also liaise with the people who know your child best (with your consent), including their teacher and any other health professionals involved in their care.
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2
Assessment
Your child’s initial assessment or consultation will involve finding out more about which tasks are a concern for you and your child. In some instances, standardised assessments are used to measure different factors or capacities (such as motor skills, cognitive capacity and sensory processing) that may be impacting on their performance in the classroom or at home. This initial session is tailored to find out more about your child’s needs.
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3
Goal Setting
Qualia therapists begin intervention by setting goals in collaboration with you and your child. Qualia therapists are trained to support your child in identifying areas that they find difficult.
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4
Intervention / therapy
Qualia therapists work to assist your child to achieve their potential at school, home or in the community. Every child receives an individual therapeutic program to support their strengths and develop new skills as required. During therapy, Qualia therapists liaise with the people who are most important in your child’s life, including your child’s teachers / educators, other health care providers and of course you!
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5
Evaluation
Evaluating your child’s progress is an ongoing process for therapists at Qualia. This includes matching therapy to your child’s learning style and ongoing communication with all people involved in your child’s care and education to ensure they are achieving their goals.
