Services

What is Occupational Therapy?

‘Occupational therapy (OT) is a science degree-based, health and social care profession, regulated by the Health and Care Professions Council. OT’s play a critical role in helping people of all ages overcome the effects of disability caused by illness, ageing or accident and enable individuals to achieve their full potential.’ - Royal College of Occupational Therapists

Occupational therapists explore how individuals have been affected by their illness or injury in relation to their ability to do everyday tasks, such as personal care, going to work and socialising. The person may need assistance and find that their illness has impacted on their roles and responsibilities. OT’s help individuals overcome these difficulties by teaching new techniques, supporting them in managing their condition and providing compensatory strategies or solutions, which may involve using aids or equipment, modifying the task or environment.

At Oxford Neuro Rehab we take time to get to know you, so that the focus of OT is determined by the ‘occupations’ that are of most importance - those that you need or want to do. We encourage our clients and their carers to actively participate in setting goals for therapy, so that they feel fully engaged in their rehabilitation and their treatment programme and recommendations are bespoke. We offer time and patience to help clients regain confidence and develop skills to optimise their functional independence and improve their quality of life.

We appreciate that some individuals may require a whole team approach and it is not uncommon for our clients to also need physiotherapy, speech and language therapy and psychology. We have worked jointly with local specialists when the need arises, please call us to discuss your needs.

Services

Functional independence

Oxford Neuro Rehab may assess clients carry out practical tasks or activities and observing how they approach and perform this, can tell us a lot about the person’s needs and guide us in how best to help them. Examples may be:

Getting dressed / washing and dressing
Laundry tasks
Cooking a snack or meal
Feeding
Shopping
Planning a bus journey
Using a computer
Writing

As occupational therapists we can also review a person’s routine, help people to evaluate what is meaningful to them, build in additional activities, providing better structure to their day.

Arm & hand rehab

Oxford Neuro Rehab are highly skilled and experienced in treating clients with muscle weakness, stiffness or spasticity. We would conduct a thorough assessment of your arm and hand and then devise a specific exercise programme. This may involve a number of different treatment modalities depending on your needs:

Sensory re-education
Oedema management
Mirror box therapy
Motor imagery
Saebo products
Functional electrical stimulation (FES)
Motor retraining
Functional task practice
Strengthening programme
Constraint induced movement therapy

At Oxford Neuro Rehab we can also offer splinting, should this be required and advise on how best to position your arm.

Postural Management

At Oxford Neuro Rehab we can provide a specialist postural assessment and will consider the needs and wants of an individual across a 24 hour period. We work closely with a number of companies to help identify and recommend the most suitable equipment solutions.

This may include:

Static seating, riser recliner arm chairs, specialist seating
Wheelchairs, manual or powered
Sleep systems / positioning aids

Aids and equipment

Oxford Neuro Rehab can observe your ability to move and transfer around your home and establish if there are any aids or equipment that may be beneficial to you e.g. bath seat, grab rails, chair raisers. We may also recommend following an assessment, one handed aids, adapted cutlery or writing aids that would make your life easier.

Cognitive Rehabilitation

It is not uncommon for people with neurological conditions to experience difficulties with their concentration, thinking, memory or decision-making skills. We can use functional task assessment to inform us of any cognitive problems and use this to devise a suitable treatment plan.

Vocational Rehabiltation

Work retention: Oxford Neuro Rehab support people with long term neurological conditions remain in work and work closely with the employee and employer to provide advise and support. We will tailor this to the wishes and needs of the client, but this may involve close liaison with human resources, line managers, occupational health and a site assessment may be required.

Return to work: For those people looking to return to work after a period of absence, Oxford Neuro Rehab can recommend a bespoke graded return to work programme and provide education and advice to the employer on their health condition and the impact this has on their job role.

Fatigue Management

Fatigue is a common symptom of neurological conditions e.g stroke, MS. Oxford Neuro Rehab can help you evaluate and gain a better understanding on the impact of fatigue on your daily routine and educate you on fatigue management principles, to help you develop good coping strategies.

Anxiety Management

Anxiety is a symptom that affects a number of individuals with or without a neurological condition. At Oxford Neuro Rehab we have experience of working with people who need help in managing their anxiety, as it may hinder their ability to do things alone, stop them from doing enjoyable activities or cause social isolation. We can work with you to teach techniques to help manage your anxiety, allowing you to live life to the fullest.

Additional services

We can also provide a number of additional services, such as falls prevention, moving and handling risk assessment and facilitating hospital discharges or support with a move to alternative accommodation.