review the following to get ready for your visit

For all visits to occupational therapy please wear comfortable and loose clothing and bring:

• Your insurance information
• Any brace or orthotics you are using
• Any required forms from your school
• Names and contact information for anyone else you would like us to include in the care plan. These may include doctors or school officials.

before your visit

Patients are referred to the Dayton Children’s occupational therapy department by a referring physician. This may be their primary care physician or a specialist. Your appointment will be made through central scheduling. If you need to see other services under rehabilitation we will work with you to ensure you can see all of these on the same day in most cases.

Please note that if your child wears glasses to please be sure to bring them to your appointments.

during your first visit 

The first visit to occupational therapy is typically an evaluation. During this visit the parent (or guardian) will be asked questions such as:

• What concerns are you having about your child?
• When did your child meet their developmental milestones (rolling, sitting, crawling, holding a bottle/cup etc…)
• Where does your child spend most of his or her time?
• What are you child’s favorite activities?
• What are your expectations or goals for occupational therapy?
• Do you have concerns with school performance?

The therapist will then spend some time watching your child’s fine motor skills using age appropriate activities. For younger children and infants the therapist will use play as motivation.

Once the initial evaluation is complete, the therapist will talk to you about your child’s strengths and areas for improvement including whether your child would benefit from occupational therapy services. If occupational therapy is required, an individualized treatment plan will be developed with your child’s lifestyle goals in mind. You will also be given activities that you can do at home with your child. Working consistently with your child on this home program will help your child make the most progress.

the occupational therapy process

As part of your treatment plan our occupational therapists will work with both the parent and the child to develop realistic goals to demonstrate progress. These goals will be adjusted as necessary based upon the child’s needs. The occupational therapists will use a variety of treatment techniques to help with your child’s fine motor skills, visual-perceptual skills, cognitive skills, and sensory-processing deficits.

Occupational therapists might:

• Help kids work on fine motor skills so they can grasp and release toys and develop good handwriting skills.
• Utilize sensory integration techniques when appropriate and necessary for the child to meet functional goals.
• Address hand-eye coordination to improve kids' play and school skills (hitting a target, batting a ball, copying from a blackboard, etc.).
• Help kids with severe developmental delays learn self-help skills (such as bathing, getting dressed, brushing teeth, and self feeding).
• Teach kids with physical disabilities the coordination skills needed to feed themselves, use a computer, or increase the speed and legibility of their handwriting.
• Evaluate a child's need for specialized equipment, such as wheelchairs, splints, bathing equipment, dressing devices, or communication aids.
• Work with kids who have sensory and attentional issues to improve focus and social skills for better function in their environments.

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