An Occupational Therapist (OT) is trained in the practice of occupational therapy. The role of an occupational therapist is to work with a client to help them achieve a fulfilled and satisfied state in life through the use of "purposeful activity or interventions designed to achieve functional outcomes which promote health, prevent injury or disability and which develop, improve, sustain or restore the highest possible level of independence.
It can be seen that occupational performance, the roles it creates for a client, and the areas it can encompass are so far-reaching that an occupational therapist can work with a wide range of clients of various limitations who are being cared for in an array of settings. Occupational therapy is about helping people do the day-to-day tasks that “occupy” their time, sustain themselves, and enable them to contribute to the wider community.
Occupational therapists (OTs) help people of all ages to improve their ability to perform tasks in their daily living and working environments. They work with individuals who have conditions that are mentally, physically, developmentally, socially or emotionally disabling. They also help them to develop, recover, or maintain daily living and work skills. Occupational therapists help clients not only to improve their basic motor functions and reasoning abilities, but also to compensate for permanent loss of function. Occupational therapists assist clients in performing activities of all types, ranging from using a computer to caring for daily needs such as dressing, cooking and eating. Physical exercises may be used to increase strength and dexterity while other activities may be chosen to improve visual acuity and the ability to discern patterns. For example, a client with short term memory loss might be encouraged to make lists to aid recall, and a person with coordination problems might be assigned exercises to improve hand eye coordination. Occupational therapists also use computer programs to help clients improve decision-making, abstract-reasoning, problem solving, and perceptual skills, as well as memory, sequencing, and coordination —- all of which are important for independent living. Wikipedia.org
