Interdisciplinary Team

Occupational Therapy

What is Occupational Therapy?

Occupational Therapists are registered health professionals. Their goal is to help people live independent, productive and satisfying lives. They do this by helping people to develop, relearn, or maintain daily living and work skills. Occupational Therapists also help caregivers, families, friends, teachers and employers to understand and learn how to support individuals with disabilities, so that he or she can maintain or increase their independence. The word "occupation"’ in occupational therapy refers to the activities and tasks that we all do every day. Occupational therapists assist people to perform activities of all types, ranging from using a computer to daily needs such as dressing, cooking and eating.

What does an Occupational Therapist do?

Occupational Therapists assess each person by interviewing them (and maybe members of his/her family/whanau) to understand their perspective of the issues and by observing what he or she does and how it is done.

Interventions may include:

• Helping to break activities into smaller steps

• Teaching new or different ways of doing old activities

• Teaching others new or different ways to help

• Group or individual work

• Assessing the need for, and where necessary, prescribe specialised equipment and/or housing modifications so that the person can manage their usual daily activities

• Stress management

• Play, leisure or recreation activities

• Exercises to increase strength and dexterity

• Advice on healthy living especially related to living with a chronic illness or disability

• Provide specific information to help a person achieve their goals

Our team provides both an Inpatient and an Outpatient service.

For Inpatients our focus/aims are on rehabilitation and establishing links within the person’s own community and returning people to independent living with or without support services.

For more information, see Inpatients.

Appointments with our Outpatient team are available from Monday - Friday, 8am to 4pm. The outpatient team covers predominantly the South Auckland region; however we will see patients in the greater Auckland area if indicated and on a case by case basis.

For more information, see Outpatients.

You can contact us on (09) 270 9000 if a referral to our service is appropriate, or discuss this with your Support Coordinator (ACC), or GP or other Health professionals currently involved in your care. 

The Auckland Spinal Rehabilitation Unit are hosting a Seating to Go Level 2 Complex Seating Course on 20th and 21st March for therapists.  For more information please go to website www.seatingtogo.co.nz or email Katrina.Spence@middlemore.co.nz

 

Any appropriate websites

• Occupational Therapy Board of New Zealand - http://www.otboard.org.nz

• New Zealand Association of Occupational Therapy - http://www.nzaot.com

• Employment opportunities – http://www.cmdhb.org.nz/Careers/currentvacancies.htm