A child's hands playing in kinetic sand with cups and moulds

Occupational Therapy

Helping children reachtheir full potential

Our approach

A holistic and sensory integrative framework

Our practice makes use of a holistic and sensory integrative framework, geared to treat children of a variety of diagnoses and ages. We strive to help children reach their full potential through an approach that is individualised to the child's and family's specific needs.

Occupational therapists use purposeful activities, specialised equipment and sound clinical reasoning to create opportunities for neurological maturation, in order to help the child respond more appropriately to people and situations in their environment.

We are trained in

Approaches & programmes

Ayres Sensory Integration
Makaton
Prechtl's Assessment of General Movements
Neurodevelopmental Therapy
Neonatal Therapy

OT services · Assessment

Assessments for
every age

NICU baby assessment (at Life Wilgeheuwel Hospital)
Baby assessments (0–12 months)
Toddler assessments (1–3 years)
Full assessments (3–13 years)

OT services · Treatment

Therapy that
fits your child

Individual therapy sessions
Joint therapy sessions (with speech therapy, physiotherapy or social work)
Treatment of babies in the NICU (at Life Wilgeheuwel Hospital)

Who we see

We provide services to children living with

Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD)Feeding difficultiesAttention Deficit Disorder (ADD / ADHD)Dyspraxia or Developmental Co-ordination Disorder (DCD)Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD)Down SyndromeDevelopmental delayLearning difficultiesVisual perceptual difficultiesPhysical impairmentCerebral palsyPremature babies or other birth complicationsOther developmental, neurological and behavioural difficulties

The OT process

How we work with you

Assessment

We always start off with an assessment of your child.

Feedback

We meet with you to discuss the findings, make our recommendations and refer further if needed.

Goals

Together, we plan the goals for therapy so the work is meaningful for your child and family.

Areas focused on in OT

What we work on

Sensory processing

How we process and interpret incoming sensory information (body position, touch, vision, hearing, movement, taste and smell) from our environment.

Gross motor skills

Muscle strength and tone, and functional skills such as throwing and catching a ball or riding a bicycle.

Bilateral integration

Crossing the midline and using the two sides of the body in a coordinated way.

Visual perceptual skills

Figure ground, visual closure, spatial relations and position in space, which support puzzles, reading, writing and spelling.

Motor planning

Thinking of new ideas and executing new and novel motor movements and tasks.

Cognitive skills

Problem solving, sequencing and concepts such as colour and shape.

Fine motor skills

Pencil grip, cutting, drawing, colouring and writing.

Concentration

A huge influence on a child's performance and coping ability at school.

Signs to look out for

Does my child need OT?

If your child is presenting with a few of these symptoms and they are struggling at school, home or socially with others, please reach out to us to establish if they need an OT assessment or consultation.

If your child is showing any of these symptoms, watch them carefully to determine if it is interfering with their physical and emotional development, their ability to play age-appropriately and to develop independence.

Play+

They do not know how to play with objects and toys
They play inappropriately for their age
They have difficulty interacting with peers during free time
Avoids certain types of play appropriate to their age
Poor coordination in outdoor play, as well as fearful of outdoor play

Scholastic performance+

Difficulty remaining seated at the table
Poor concentration
Struggles to follow instructions in comparison to other children their age
Poor fine motor skills for their age, such as cutting, colouring or pencil grasp
Takes a long time to learn new tasks or skills
Poor development of numeracy and literacy skills
Decreased confidence or poor self-esteem

Sensory+

It is also important to observe children who display over- or under-sensitivity towards various sensory inputs (for example touch, movement, noises, visual or foods), difficulty with self-soothing, distress with changes in routine, or emotional instability.

Inability to calm down or unwind
Low activity levels: avoids gross motor activities and may always be tired and lack energy
High activity levels, such as crashing into things or continuously swinging or jumping
Clumsy behaviour: the child may trip or fall often, bump into things
Scared on unstable surfaces or when high off the ground, such as refusing to come down a fireman's pole
Difficulty focusing in a noisy environment
Aversion to being touched, eating foods with certain textures, getting hands messy or wearing certain clothing; prefers wearing shoes
Troubled by ordinary sounds, smells or sights
Limited food choices, gags on lumpy or mixed textures; resists tooth brushing or dental work
Excessive licking, chewing or mouthing of non-food objects
Craves loud music and touch and seems oblivious to pain
Does not want to participate in ring time

General movements+

Delayed developmental milestones
Rigid, "floppy", awkward or asymmetrical movements
Appears poorly coordinated when running, jumping or on playground equipment
Falls over and/or bumps into objects frequently
Poor balance
Often breaks toys or objects unintentionally

Self-care+

Takes a long time to develop independence in self-care tasks such as dressing, bathing, feeding or grooming (where appropriate for their age)
Difficulty with skills relating to self-care, such as bilateral coordination of hands to use a knife and fork

Your OT team