Dedicated to serving the needs of Pratt, Kansas,
Pratt Regional Medical Center is a progressive
medical center serving south central Kansas and
the panhandle of Oklahoma.
Occupational Therapy Helps Individuals
Live Life to its Fullest
Released: April 13, 2009
Contact: Jenny Lamatsch, Pratt Regional Medical Center Occupational Therapist
Phone: (620) 450-1443
Pratt, KS — Occupational therapy enables people of all ages live life to its fullest by helping them promote health, prevent—or live better with—injury, illness, or disability. It is a practice deeply rooted in science and is evidence-based, meaning that the plan designed for each individual is supported by data, experience, and “best practices” that have been developed and proven over time.
“Being an OT means that I get to help people become more independent in the tasks that are important to them,” PRMC Occupational Therapist Jenny Lamatsch said.
Occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants focus on “doing” whatever occupations or activities are meaningful to the individual. It is occupational therapy’s purpose to get beyond problems to the solutions that assure living life to its fullest. These solutions may be adaptations for how to do a task, changes to the surroundings, or helping individuals to alter their own behaviors.
When working with an occupational therapy practitioner, strategies and modifications are customized for each individual to resolve problems, improve function, and support everyday living activities. The goal is to maximize potential. Through these therapeutic approaches, occupational therapy helps individuals design their lives, develop needed skills, adjust their environments (e,g., home, school, or work) and build health-promoting habits and routines that will allow them to thrive.
By taking the full picture into account—a person’s psychological, physical, emotional, and social makeup as well as their environment—occupational therapy assists clients to do the following:
Achieve goals
Function at the highest possible level
Concentrate on what matters most to them
Maintain or rebuild their independence
Participate in daily activities that they need or want to do.
Founded in 1917, the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) represents the interests and concerns of more than 140,000 occupational therapists, assistants and students nationwide. The Association educates the public and advances the profession of occupational therapy by providing resources, setting standards including accreditations and serving as an advocate to improve health care. Based in Bethesda, Md., AOTA’s major programs and activities are directed toward promoting the professional development of its members and assuring consumer access to quality services so patients can maximize their individual potential. For more information, go to www.aota.org.
