Occupational therapy: types and use in Psychology

This type of intervention is very common in geriatrics and in psychology applied to serious illnesses.

An elderly person with dementia or neurodegenerative disease, a drug-dependent adult or a child with a profound intellectual disability. In many of these cases it will be necessary to teach these people to put into practice various attitudes and skills that are necessary for proper personal functioning or that allow these skills to be retained as long as possible.

One of the means to achieve this learning is the use of occupational therapyOccupational therapy, a field of health that has its own university degree in many Spanish-speaking countries. In this article we will know how it works and what methods it employs.

The concept of occupational therapy

Occupational therapy is a set of therapeutic techniques, methods and treatments that, through the performance of a series of activities or occupations, stimulate the treated person to develop the basic skills necessary for daily life, prevent disease or disability, recover or maintain faculties, learn new ways of acting and/or adapt to their situation. The objective is to achieve a substantial improvement in the patient's quality of life and to strengthen his or her autonomy. and strengthen their autonomy.

The different activities to be performed can work both physically and psychically: fine motor skills, memory, cognition, executive functions or executive functions are usually the most worked elements in occupational therapy. Occupational therapy is generally used with a rehabilitative purpose, but it can also be dedicated to learning to enjoy or to create a series of skills that allow the realization of a future occupation.

The activities to be carried out can be very varied, depending on the type of problems being worked on and the objective to be achieved. The ways of applying these activities can also vary greatly: physical games, mental exercises, dance or music therapy, for example, can be applied. In any case, they should that they refer directly to the patient's day-to-day activities. day-to-day activities of the patient and that they are interesting and meaningful to the patient.

Other needs and uses of this type of therapy

They should be designed in such a way that the subject's condition, performance and evolution can be evaluated, and the priorities and needs of the subject in question are also taken into account.

It is common that among the various tasks are mental exercises that force one to remember, plan and organize, as well as to carrying out basic self-care and enable the learning of motor and behavioral skills essential to maintaining skills that are essential for maintaining well-being. It is not mere entertainment or something to pass the time: all the activities that are carried out (even if the aim is that the subject learns to enjoy his leisure time) are intended to stimulate the patient and help him to cope with his difficulties, having a therapeutic orientation.

It is frequent that this type of therapy is carried out in a group formatIt is common for this type of therapy to be carried out in a group format, bringing together different subjects with the same problem or with similar profiles who need to work on the same basic area or activity in the same session. However, it can also be used individually when it is intended to teach a skill.

Types of patients who require it

There is a large number of people who may require the use of occupational therapy, several typical cases having been mentioned in the introduction to this article.

Thus, occupational therapy is very well known and applied in the world of geriatrics, in elderly and old people.in the world of geriatrics, in elderly people and the elderly. This is due to the functional limitations caused by the aging of the organism. And it is especially common in patients with neurodegenerative diseases such as dementia, in which the aim is to maintain and optimize the autonomous functioning of the subject as far as possible.

Another group we have already mentioned has to do with the intellectually disabled population, which in some cases (especially when the disability is moderate, severe or profound) may require stimulation and learning of basic activities through this therapy format. through this therapy format. The same is true for other neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism.

Finally, all those people who have suffered some kind of disease (either congenital or acquired) or disabling disorder will benefit greatly from this type of therapy. Examples of this can be found in people with cerebral palsy. Also in patients with cancer, sensory deficits or disabilities, substance dependence or psychological disorders.

Benefits of this intervention

The performance of occupational therapy is very beneficial for the maintenance of mental health and the prolongation of basic functionality in patients with different diseases. In subjects with progressive degeneration of functions, it can prolong normal functioning and slow down the degeneration process.

In these cases as well as in those in which there is no loss of function, physical, psychological and sensory stimulation, the enhancement of skills and sometimes the learning of activities and and sometimes the learning of essential activities and skills. It also allows the patient to maintain and sometimes increase his or her self-esteem and independence. Likewise, they can also lead to social and labor inclusion by developing behaviors that allow their achievement.

Finally, the fact of observing other patients in similar situations allows both socialization and the subject not to feel different, being able to express their emotions and doubts. express their emotions and doubts to people in parallel and doubts in front of people in parallel conditions to their own.

In spite of the above, it is important to keep one thing in mind: occupational therapy is not a curative treatment, but rather a treatment for the patient. is not a curative treatment, but a support and a way to alleviate the and a way to alleviate the disability that may be caused by various conditions.