Brain injuries usually affect sensory, motor, behavioural, and cognitive functions of the individual. An individual who has suffered brain damage may find it difficult to attend to his or her day-to-day activities that he or she enjoyed prior to the injury. They may have decreased memory, balance, impairment, coordination, organising abilities, and sequencing activities. An increase in impulsive behaviour is evident after such an injury. This article provides information on the importance of brain damage occupational therapy rehabilitation.
Occupational therapy plays an important role in the rehabilitation process of individuals suffering from brain damage. These programs will assist the affected individuals to reintegrate back into the community. Occupational therapy encompasses all aspects of an affected individual’s life such as daily living activities, work demands, sleep habits, play, social activities, and leisure. An occupational therapy professional can help the patient relearn how to perform all these activities or find new ways to accomplish them. Occupational therapists work with their clients in real-life settings like a bank, mall, grocery store, workplace, home, bus, train or any other environment.
Occupational therapy professionals usually work as part of a team of physical therapists, neuropsychologist, social workers, speech-language pathologist, neuropsychologist, and vocational rehabilitation counsellors. Each patient’s recovery rate will be different because every brain injury isn’t the same. Here are some of the common areas that an occupational therapist would address.
. Assist the patient to develop highly effective routines and schedules.
. Consult with the employer or school system to adapt the school or work environment to suit the affected individual’s performance abilities.
. Develop healthy hobbies and leisure activities.
. Train and assist the patient to relearn some of the day-to-day activities such as bathing, dressing, and grooming.
. Assisting the patient to develop compensatory techniques for day-to-day living such as shopping, meal preparation, financial tasks, and caring for children.
. Develop cognitive retraining techniques to address various cognitive skills like memory, concentration, attention, and executive functioning.
. Teach the family members of the patient how to cope with changes in behaviour and the low frustration tolerance of the individual.
. Assist the affected individual to relearn social skills through rehearsals and pre-processing.
Occupational therapy plays an important part in rehabilitating brain-damaged individuals. Occupation therapy programs work to reintegrate the affected patient back into the community. The right program involves both indoor and outdoor activities to be performed by the patient. The aforementioned article provides information on the importance of brain damage occupational therapy rehabilitation.
