She is passionate about helping people with a variety of mental health conditions to improve their level of functioning and quality of life. Find out more about our mental health services. Skip to navigation Skip to search. Blogs An occupational therapist's role in mental health recovery. An occupational therapist's role in mental health recovery 25 January Blog.
Community services Mental health. Their ultimate goal is to help people live meaningful lives as independently as possible. Community mental health occupational therapist Sarah Kerlin discusses what to expect from a mental health OT and how they can help.
OTs and mental health OTs working in mental health have completed additional training to develop skills to work with people experiencing mental health issues. OTs can provide clients: cognitive assessments and cognitive treatment sensory strategies group programs socio-emotional skills return to work support development of communication skills development of independent living skills such as cooking.
Did you know? I identify goals in their treatment sessions and work with the client to achieve them. Specifically, occupational therapy within the setting of child and adolescent mental health focuses on those underlying physiological influences and teaching patients to identify and utilize self-regulation strategies in order for patients to get back to participating in meaningful occupations such as going to school, being with friends, and participating within the family system AOTA, a.
In addition, occupational therapists can work with individuals with sensory processing disorders SPD and social-emotional learning dysfunction, which are commonly seen within the child and adolescent setting of mental health AOTA, b.
The following evidence-based approaches support the profession of occupational therapy within this child and adolescent mental health setting. These evidence-based approaches include:. Overall, it is clear that occupational therapists have the distinct knowledge and skill sets to provide effective, holistic interventions within the mental health setting.
Photo: Mental health occupational therapist Catherine Daly. Occupational therapists OTs specialising in mental health draw on a range of psychological and occupational therapy strategies to help people understand and cope with their daily function.
Mental health OTs assist people who are struggling with adverse life circumstances, such as grief and adjustment, emotions, stress and parenting, and can help people with severe and complex mental health conditions, from anxiety to depression. These practitioners also assist with developmental conditions, such as Autism Spectrum Disorder ASD , or can help children struggling with medical conditions, such as cystic fibrosis or juvenile diabetes. With about 17 years of clinical experience specialising in infant, child and parent mental health, Ms Daly helps children and their families with a range of developmental, psychosocial, mental health, academic and functional self-care difficulties, ranging from attachment behaviours to unsettled infants and parents with depression.
They can also be found in settings such as hospitals, working in child, maternity or in general adult wards. She says a lack of understanding about the work of mental health OTs exists, from both inside and outside the health professions - even from within the OT discipline. Mental health OTs recently told OT Australia that their specialised skills are being overlooked when OTs refer their clients for mental health intervention, with their colleagues more likely to refer their patients to psychologists instead of mental health OTs.
Students can opt for mental health clinical placements throughout their course. Registered OT graduates can choose to work in a mental health field or setting, and have the option to pursue a range of avenues for postgraduate study in mental health.
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