Pediatric Occupational Therapy

What is Pediatric Occupational Therapy (OT)?

Pediatric Occupational Therapy (OT) uses play, which is a child’s natural occupation, to restore or develop necessary skills and independence so that children can function in their home, school, and community. Fun and functional activities are utilized throughout treatment sessions to facilitate appropriate responses from the child and improve their abilities. Each child will receive a thorough evaluation by an occupational therapist. Based on this evaluation a specialized plan of care will be created for the child’s specific needs, which will then be carried out by either an occupational therapist or occupational therapy assistant. Children from 0-18 years old are seen through pediatric occupational therapy.

When should I be concerned about my child?

Since occupational therapy covers a wide variety of skills and a large age range, there could be several indicators that your child could benefit from services. If you have concerns you should talk to your pediatrician. You can also always bring your child in for a free screening! Your child does not necessarily have to have a specific medical diagnosis to be in need of occupational therapy services.

Some areas that Occuaptional Therapy can address are: 

  • Sensory Integration
    • Visual
    • Gustatory
    • Auditory
    • Tactile
    • Olfactory
  • Fine Motor Skills
    • Pencil grasp
    • Pre-writing
    • Handwriting
    • Manipulation of fasteners for dressing
    • Self-feeding with feeding utensils such as spoon, fork, etc.
  • Visual Perceptual Skills
    • Letter reversals
    • Number reversals
    • Visual figure ground
    • Visual-spatial relationships
    • Reading
    • Visual discrimination
    • Visual sequential-memory
    • Visual closure
    • Visual form constancy
  • Cognitive Skills
    • Problem-solving
    • Organizational skills
    • Attention
    • Interaction with peers and adults
    • Motor planning
  • Sequential Memory skills
    • Auditory sequential memory
    • Visual sequential memory
  • Activities of Daily Living Skills (ADLs)
    • Dressing
    • Toileting
    • Self-feeding
    • Grooming/hygiene
  • Instrumental of Activities of Daily Living Skills (IADLs)
    • Money Management skills 
  • Eye-hand Coordination Skills

What do I need to get my child an evaluation scheduled? 

The first step for an evaluation is to get a signed prescription from your child’s doctor requesting an evaluation and treatment for occupational therapy. You can then call one of our facilities of your choice in which you will provide child’s information, parent information, and insurance information to be scheduled for an evaluation. Click here to see if we are in network with your insurance.

Monroe

West Monroe

Ruston

Shreveport

Monday-Friday

8am-5:30pm

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