Occupational therapy

Domain IX · Biomedical, neuro & digital

What it is

RCOT describes OT as helping people do the things they want and need to do in everyday life (at home, at work and elsewhere) to increase independence and wellbeing. The therapist looks beyond the diagnosis to the person's goals and the daily activities that matter to them, then builds a practical,…

Format

• Format. Individual and group sessions; in hospitals, community teams, homes, schools, workplaces, shelters and other places where people carry out daily activities.
• Session count. Not specified by the sources cited; it varies by service, setting and funding.

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• Version followed: occupational therapy (OT) as the profession and its regulators publish it in 2022–2026: the HCPC Standards of proficiency for occupational therapists (in effect from 1 September 2023), RCOT public information, AOTA's mental health pages and 2022 fact sheet, the AOTA state-licensure FAQ, WFOT position statements, the MOHO-IRM assessment catalogue (University of Illinois Chicago) and the COPM (Law et…
• Occupational therapy is a registered rehabilitation profession, not a psychotherapy. This guide is written for the psychotherapist who works alongside an occupational therapist, refers to one, or shares a client with one. It describes what OT in mental health does as the profession publishes it, then sets out the psychotherapist's own tasks: recognising when OT would help, referral, collaboration, joint goals and…
• Registered profession and regulators.

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Is it a group, retreat or community? How do they respond if someone wants to leave or raises a concern?
• Does it use a device, heat, cold, water or a physical procedure? Has a medical professional checked that it is safe for you?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• Loss of structure after discharge leading to relapse.
• Overload from two sets of homework; keep the total realistic.
• Two different activity plans in one week; contradictory advice.
• Long waiting lists; agree what you will keep working on while the client waits.
• Activity changes that raise anxiety or low mood; pass these on to the team (B6).

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.