Nemours’ occupational therapists have a bachelor’s or master’s degree in the field and are licensed to provide evaluation and treatment services for children who have difficulty performing everyday activities, such as dressing, eating, and school-related tasks. We help young patients develop the increased strength and mobility necessary to complete these activities of daily living.
After a thorough evaluation of your child’s needs, we will design a comprehensive treatment program tailored to your child. Therapy may be provided on an inpatient or outpatient basis. Summer outpatient programs are also available.
We have a Certified Hand Therapist on staff, which enables us to provide specialized therapy for children with hand injuries. However, we also see children with a variety of other conditions, including those that are present at birth (such as cerebral palsy or Down syndrome); those acquired through illness (such as muscular dystrophy or juvenile rheumatoid arthritis); those acquired through accident or injury (such as traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injury, or loss of a body part); and even those due to prematurity or developmental delay. We also treat children with deficits in sensory processing, commonly seen in autism spectrum disorders.
Our treatment plan for your child may include:
- muscle training and re-education
- building endurance
- enhancing coordination and balance
- fine motor training (such as handwriting)
- perceptual-motor skills training
- learning to use a prosthetic
- improving self-care techniques
We routinely fabricate upper extremity splints for post-surgical patients as well as for patients with neuromuscular disorders and cerebral palsy. If necessary, we may also recommend certain types of adaptive equipment or customized devices that will help your child to feed, bathe, toilet, and perform other activities of daily living independently.
Our staff works closely with all members of the health care team, in addition to family members, to provide the best possible care and outcomes for each patient. Our goal is always to restore as much function and independence as possible to your child.