Occupational Therapy

Play is considered the primary occupation of the child and their fundamental means of discovering their environments, bodies and senses for learning. During their targeted treatment, Occupational Therapists utilise play as a medium for purposeful participation and interaction to enhance skills globally for children who have delays in scholastic, social or self-care participation. Throughout this child-centred playful process, the OT balances challenge and support in order to elicit growth.

Services Provided

Ayre’s Sensory Integration Therapy®

Our bodies make use of sensory input from our surroundings to make sense of our environments and own bodies, plan our actions, organise our behaviour and interact purposefully. These sensory inputs include sight, smell, sound, touch, taste, movement and body awareness stimuli.

For some children sensory integration does not develop as efficiently as it should, presenting as difficulties developing, learning and controlling their impulses and behaviour.

What is Sensory Modulation?
Sensory modulation refers to the ability of the nervous system to regulate, organize and prioritize incoming sensory information, inhibiting or suppressing irrelevant information and prioritizing and helping the child to focus on relevant information. A child with a well-modulated nervous system adapts effectively to changes in the environment and is able to maintain a level of arousal and attention appropriate to the task at hand. The child is able to block out irrelevant information, attend to relevant information and respond appropriately and adaptively. This enables the child to engage in a meaningful manner in activities of daily life.

What is Sensory Discrimination?
Sensory discrimination is the interpretation of sensory input within the central nervous system to make sense of what is perceived, forming perceptions and allowing for response to sensory input. E.g. hearing a noise (registering), interpreting it is your name being called, resulting in responding by either turning your head towards the stimulus or verbally answering to the call.

Sensory Integration Therapy utilises the brain’s neuroplasticity at a young age to facilitate more typical responses to sensory input for improved motor planning/praxis, participation and emotional regulation.

Postural development

The stability and activation in sitting and standing posture, gross motor skills (co-ordination, ball skills, balance) and midline crossing and bilateral integration (establishing dominance, co-ordination) can be improved in occupational therapy intervention. Enhanced endurance and prolonged alignment is aimed for in preparation for age appropriate classroom interaction, leisure and sporting pursuits. Assistive devices such as ergonomically enhancing sitting devices are suggested when required.

Fine motor skills

Fine motor skills can be improved in Occupational Therapy intervention. They are the skills that use the small muscles and movements in the hands to achieve functional tasks from grasping, releasing, turning, pulling, threading, posting, and cutting to handwriting. Establishing dominance, ensuring adequate use of both hands in a task (one hand in an active role, the other in a supportive role) and strengthening the correct muscles in the shoulder girdle, wrist, hands and fingers are important foundational steps of fine motor specialisation and for bimanual functional skills such as eating with knife and fork.

Socio-emotional skills

Self-discovery and self-regulation
Developing the child’s sense of self and their self-concept, identifying individual temperamental factors and suitable strategies to affirm and strengthen positive traits, developing positive values and a sense of self directedness without finding collaborations with others restrictive can be addressed in Occupational Therapy intervention. This is done through activities.

Socio-relational Skills
Peer and family relationships, self-esteem, emotional awareness and regulation, appropriate play skills and social participation can be addressed in Occupational Therapy intervention. Behaviour shaping and developing positive relational and conflict-resolution habits. Gudrun van Heukelum is a trained Play Therapist and offers play therapy services, alongside occupational therapy intervention.

Independence Skills

Coping strategies to work on attention and concentration difficulties, planning and organizing and sequencing of work can be worked on in occupational therapy intervention. This aims to assist in managing chores, homework and tasks that are not only pleasure driven. Regulation of Level of cognitive arousal, attention, planning and execution of sequential steps, organisation of space and task, concept formation and generalization; and anchoring and memorizing of skills can also be addressed.

Visual perceptual skills

Visual perceptual skills are the foundations for reading, writing and numerical skills. A comprehensive assessment will ascertain exactly which visual perceptual areas require specialisation to build strong building blocks for reading and writing.

Common diagnosis treated in Occupational Therapy
(in alphabetical order)

Absence of sustainable positive habits in self-care, scholastic and homework related situations, chores and responsibilities, social and leisure pursuits and play and imaginary joyful self-expression
AD(H)D
Autistic Spectrum Disorders
Cerebral Palsy
Developmental Delays
Difficulties in Planning and Executive Function
Dyslexia
Dyspraxia
Executive Functioning Difficulties
Genetic Disorders
Hearing and Visual Impairments
Intellectual Disabilities
Learning Difficulties
Problems relating to emotional regulation and developing resilience
Sensory Processing Disorders
Socio-emotional Challenges
Visual perceptual Challenges

Testimonials

Extra Resources

Please see https://instsi.co.za/what-is-sensory-integration/ or the below article links for more information on Ayres Sensory Integration® and Sensory Processing.

Article links:

What can an Occupational Therapist do for you?

The Occupational Therapy Process

1. Referral

This can be made by the child’s parents or guardians, another health professional or the child’s teacher

2. Initial Interview with parents and child

Initial interview, in which we obtain medical, birth, developmental and sensori-motor history, as well as find out what your, and the teacher’s main concerns are. We believe that the child’s motivation and “buy into” the process is most important for a successful therapy journey

3. Comprehensive Assessment

A comprehensive assessment of your child’s strengths and difficulties will be completed using a battery of standardised tests and clinical observations. Although the assessment can be quite challenging for your child, children typically enjoy the assessment as the activities are child-directed and fun. The assessment consists of looking at your child’s sensory functioning, gross and fine motor development, as well at their visual-perceptual skills.

4. Detailed Feedback

Detailed verbal feedback is provided to the parents once the report has been completed. This includes discussing your child’s strengths and areas of concern, as well as making recommendations. You will also receive the written report based on the assessment findings. Should your child require occupational therapy, times will be arranged at the feedback consultation.