Occupational Therapy
Our Occupational Therapists work closely with the multidisciplinary team. The focus is the evaluation and treatment of individuals with neurological impairments. Occupational Therapy is a client-centred health profession concerned with promoting health and well-being through occupation.
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At RehabWorx, our team of Occupational Therapists conducts a comprehensive assessment to identify the patient’s abilities and any limitations when participating in personal care, work and leisure routines. Our aim is to reintegrate patients back into everyday life.
Occupational Therapists enhance a person's ability to engage in the roles they want to, need to or are expected to, by modifying the occupation or the environment to better support their occupational engagement.
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Simple tasks such as washing, dressing and conducting personal hygiene are all activities that are important to patients, yet can be difficult to do once the neurological system has been affected. Retraining of basic activities of daily living, such as meal planning, cooking, driving and returning to work are fundamental in ensuring the patient lives a healthy and fulfilling life amidst his/her disability.
OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY OFFERS:
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Functional independence training starts with the assessment and treatment of the patient’s current abilities in activities of daily living. This will include, where necessary, assessment of physical or motor skills as well as mental processing skills, to enable functional participation.
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To improve hand and arm functions and prevent complications through the provision of specific exercises to work on muscle strength and range of movement, sensory re-education and to practice specific activities to improve hand function. Therapeutic Electrical Stimulation is also used.
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Visual Perceptual Rehabilitation
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Cognitive Rehabilitation
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Assessment and prescription of adaptive devices and liaison with appropriate funders and agencies for the purchase of recommended equipment.
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Home visits to advise on functional home modifications, where appropriate.
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Carer and family training
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Driving Assessments
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Work rehabilitation
We use our hands every day to get dressed, to eat, to wash, to feel, to touch, to love. When our arm and hand are affected by a stroke or another neurological condition it affects our entire life. Therapy and exercises to improve the awareness (through sensory stimulation), use of, coordination, quality of movement and endurance of the upper limb and hand are done to improve the function of the affected limb. We aim to improve hand and arm functions and prevent complications through the provision of specific exercises to work on muscle strength and range of movement, normalise tone, and address sensory re-education and to practice specific activities to improve hand function.
Therapeutic Electrical Stimulation is also used to stimulate nerves that supply muscle contraction and aims to assist function and retrain movement.
We are part of the Botox clinic team at Groenkloof hospital, including motivation for injection sites and communicating with the providing Doctor, and providing the post Botox follow-ups and treatment programmes.
Several standardised assessments are used to evaluate and determine cognitive challenges and specific treatment programmes are devised, according to the patient’s specific needs.
Visual perceptual rehabilitation is addressed, since it is an essential processing skill for participating in all spheres of life.
Should a person not master his or her premorbid skills and this interfere with a person’s ability to return to work, therapy can target specific aspects to improve these skills. Wher eappropriate, patients receive specific work related Rehabilitation (including mental and physical endurance), Work hardening, and support to reintegrate back to their work environment as optimal as possible.
Driving is a highly complex activity with great risks involved. After an injury, patients are not always safe to drive by themselves. This results in dependence in daily life, and difficulty accessing their work and community.
Therefore a Fitness to Drive assessment is performed to ascertain whether patients can return to independent driving, or what limitations should be put in place until such a time.
At RehabWorx, we have Driver Fitness Coalition (DFC) trained therapists who have a passion for getting patients back on the road safely.
HOME & WORK VISITS
Home Visits
Prior to a patient’s discharge, a home visit can be arranged by the Occupational Therapist. The main goal of a home visit is to ensure a person’s safety at home and to provide practical advice best suited for the person’s return home, adapting the environment and arranging adaptive equipment where necessary. Follow-up home visits, post-discharge, can be arranged, depending on the location and therapist capacity.
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Work Visits
When a patient is due to return to work after a neurological incident and there are concerns about their capacity to work, a work visit can be carried out. A feedback report can then be issued to the Neurologist and the Patient’s superior at work. This evaluation will then report on the skills pertaining to the person's specific work specifications and what adaptations need to be accommodated for. Should any of the above skills interfere with a person’s ability to return to work, therapy can target specific aspects to improve these skills.