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Occupational Therapist
Helps people perform daily activities after illness/injury; adapts environments for accessibility.
Did you know?
Occupational therapy became an official profession on 15 March 1917, when its founders met in Clifton Springs, New York, to start a national society.
How subjects help
- Biology: Understand how a stroke affects the body so you can plan realistic daily goals.
- Psychology: Keep someone motivated as they relearn tasks like dressing or cooking after an injury.
- Anatomy: Know which hand muscles to train so a patient can grip a spoon or button a shirt again.
- Sociology: Adapt a home, school or workplace so a person can join in fully with others.
A famous name
Eleanor Clarke Slagle: Called the mother of occupational therapy; she co-founded its first professional society in the US in 1917.
Try it yourself: Test your balance like a physio
- Stand facing a wall with your fingertips resting on it. Lift one foot and hold for 5 to 10 seconds, keeping your hips level. Do it three times on each leg.
- Walk heel-to-toe along the wall for at least five steps, putting each heel right in front of the other toes and looking ahead.
- Try the one-leg stand again with your fingertips barely touching the wall, and time how long you last on each leg.
- Write down which leg is steadier and which move felt hardest.
Physiotherapists and occupational therapists use simple balance tests like these to measure how someone is recovering and to plan their exercises.
Adapted from NHS: Balance exercises.
Also try: Design something easier to hold.
Known for it in
USA, Australia, Canada, UK, Sweden