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| Information about Occupational Therapy and Occupational Therapists. What is Occupational Therapy? Occupational Therapy is a skilled treatment by a professional trained in physical and psychosocial components of development and disease. Treatment is aimed towards maximizing independence in all areas of daily life. Occupation refers to the roles one has in their life. For example, a child may assume the roles of student, family member and playmate. What training is required for a Occupational Therapist? An Occupational Therapist must complete a course of study from an accredited program and receive a Bachelors, Master of Science or Doctoral degree in Occupational Therapy. After completion of study, a supervised clinical internship of at least six months in a variety of health care settings is required. Before being allowed to practice, the Occupational Therapist must pass a national certification exam. The Occupational Therapist must successfully complete ongoing continuing education requirements by regulated by the state of Florida. How do I know if my child needs occupational therapy? Occupational Therapy is a treatment approach to maximize performance in daily life. If a child is not performing well in his or her roles as student, family member or friend, or is limited by any physical or social detriment, Occupational Therapy may be beneficial. A child may be refered for Occupational Therapy by a teacher, a physician, another therapist or others that recognize difficulties in attention, activity level, handwriting, visual perceptual skills or self-care which affect performance in the classroom or home environments. If you have concerns about your child's development or if your child has been referred for an occupational screen, call our office in downtown Orlando to schedule a screening appointment. A screen is a quick, inexpensive procedure that will determine whether there is a need for any further evaluation. What is an occupational screen? An occupational screen is short procedure done with children between two and six years old, to determine the need for a more thorough evaluation. To the child, the screen may seem like a play session with a fun adult, but the occupational therapist is actually taking measurements of specific skills. At the end of the screen, the therapist will consult with you about the results. If the results of the screen suggest that further evaluation is recommended, you will be advised to consult with your pediatrician. Your pediatrician can then give you a prescription to have a full evaluation administered by the therapist. Why do I need to consult a pediatrician? It is possible that there may be underlying physiological issues associated with a child's occupational delays. The pediatrician can confirm or rule any of these other causes and give you a prescription for a full occupational therapy evaluation and any other treatments that are necessary. What is an occupational therapy evaluation? A full evaluation is considerably more thorough than a screen. The evaluation determines the need for Occupational Therapy services by assessing a variety of areas which include fine motor skills, visual motor and visual perceptual skills, self care, functional cognitive development, sensory processing development and psychosocial skills. Upon completion of the evaluation, a plan of care is determined to set up a baseline for areasof weakness/delay and goals are established to improve skills and function. What does the occupational therapist do during the therapy sessions with my child? An OT engages a child in play activities to foster improvement in that child's area of weakness. The treatment is usually child-centered so that it is enjoyable for the child while working towards improvement of the goals set in the plan of care.The OT also trains the parent on strategies to maximize progress. How often and how long does a child meet with the occupational therapist? The amount of time a child spends with the occupational therapist is determined by what is necessary to achieve to goals set forth in the occupational therapy evaluation. The child needs to have an OT evaluation in order to answer this question accurately How much do you charge? There are different charges for different procedures. Please note that, in most cases, the fee for occupational therapy services is covered by insurance. Please call our office for details specific to your situation. Do you accept insurance? Collaborative Function is a provider for several insurance organizations, including Medicaid. In most cases Collaborative Function is able to bill your insurance directly. However, as our provider list changes from time to time, we ask that you call our office for the most current provider list. We would be happy to check your child's eligibility under your plan for you. |
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