Pediatric Occupational Therapy
Our pediatric occupational therapists help children in East Central Indiana and West Central Ohio overcome challenges with everyday activities at home and in their community.
Helping kids thrive with play-based occupational therapy
We believe every child deserves the opportunity to play, grow, and develop to their fullest potential. That’s why our pediatric occupational therapy (OT) program at Reid Health has been designed to help children overcome challenges at home and in their community.
Occupational therapy can address issues that are preventing a child from participating in what they love. Whether it’s sensory concerns, functional vision challenges, grasp and fine motor difficulties, or feeding issues, our team of caring and skilled therapists guides your child every step of the way through a personalized treatment plan. We ensure your child feels secure and well cared for as they learn and develop these crucial skills to help them achieve age-appropriate independence and confidence.
Occupational therapy for children
Occupational therapy (OT) helps children develop the skills needed for everyday activities. Our fun and evidence-based methods encourage skill-building and independence for children from infancy through young adulthood.
- Occupational therapy common diagnoses include:
- Prematurity
- Intrauterine drug exposure
- Feeding difficulty
- Pediatric stroke
- Cerebral palsy
- Traumatic brain injury
- Brachial plexus injury
- Orthopedic injuries
- Motor skill deficits
- Ataxia
- Developmental delay
- Fine motor delay
- Autism
- ADHD
- Sensory processing disorder
- Down syndrome
- Rhett syndrome
- Genetic disorders
- Life skills for young adults with developmental disabilities
Pediatric OT services
Our outpatient pediatric OT program addresses a variety of needs for kids living in East Central Indiana and West Central Ohio, including:
- Strengthening fine motor skills: Improving grasping patterns, holding writing or eating utensils, using scissors, or tasks like buttoning a shirt or zipping up pants.
- Daily living skills: Gaining age-appropriate independence in areas such as eating, grooming, dressing, going to the bathroom, and social skills.
- Sensory integration: Helping children process sensory input in ways that feel safe and comfortable and developing adaptive behaviors to help self-regulation.
- Functional vision support: Addressing vision challenges that impact activities like reading, writing, and depth perception
- Feeding: A child who has problems at mealtime might need to work on feeding with their therapists (often a collaboration between occupational and speech therapy) to address deficits in oral motor coordination and sensory aversions.
- Splinting and hand orthotics: Hand splints are a therapeutic tool used to benefit a child's hand position to facilitate improved hand function.
- Wheelchair assessments: We can make recommendations for modifications of a wheelchair and can make adjustments to a patient's existing wheelchair to improve positioning and comfort.
- Specialized therapies: We offer advanced options like Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy (CIMT) — which helps kids with neurological conditions impacting their abilities on one side better use their affected limbs with temporary casts and play therapy — and Intensive Neuro Functional Strengthening®, Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) for children with specific conditions.
No matter the challenge, we work with your family to build your child’s confidence and independence.
What to expect during OT
When you choose Reid Health as your child's OT provider, we begin with a comprehensive evaluation to identify areas where your child would benefit from additional support. Together, we’ll create a personalized treatment plan with achievable functional goals tailored to your child’s unique needs.
During therapy in our innovative pediatric rehabilitation center, your child will play games, participate in activities, and use equipment to make learning new skills fun and engaging.
Pediatric OT frequently asked questions
We know parenting can feel overwhelming, especially when your child needs extra support. We’re here to help you feel prepared and empowered when it comes to occupational therapy. To help you get started, below are some commonly asked questions that may might be helpful to you.
Get started with OT at Reid
Watching your child overcome challenges and achieve milestones is one of the greatest joys of parenting. We work with you and your child to unlock their potential, one step at a time. Get a referral and start OT at Reid.