Occupational therapy is a health care profession that identifies and addresses problems affecting function in an individual’s daily life.

Occupational therapists help individuals develop skills, use strategies, and make adaptations needed to function independently in their life roles and responsibilities.

Our treatments address physical, cognitive, and emotional health conditions that impact daily function – including taking care of yourself, others, or your home; activity in the community, driving, working, studying, and leisure pursuits.

We also assess home, work, and community environments to recommend adaptations that reduce barriers to enable participation in these environments.

Our role is to teach new skills, and create adaptations that are needed to help you continue to set and achieve your goals, today and in the future.

We commonly think of occupation as work, but life’s occupation is not confined to the workplace.

“Occupation” in occupational therapy is not exclusive to work.  It refers to all of things that you do in life, what “occupies” your life, at home, at work, at school, and in your community.

Our Model of Practice: 

The Canadian Model of Occupational Performance and Engagement guides occupational therapists to consider the dynamic relationship between an individual’s physical, cognitive, and psychological status, their physical, cultural and social environment, and their functioning in normal life (CAOT, 1997, 2007).

Resources:

Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists:

• What is Occupational Therapy?
• Occupational Therapy Stories and Facts

College of Occupational Therapists of Ontario:

• What Occupational Therapists Do