Children's Occupational Therapy (OT): Early Intervention Services - Nelson

Provides free services for children 0 – 6 years of age where there are concerns regarding physical, sensory, behavioral and/or cognitive development.

“Occupations” refer to anything a person does during their day-to-day life. For young children, occupations generally include:

• Self-care: toileting, bathing, dressing, eating, sleeping, grooming, etc.
• Work: fine motor skills (drawing, craft, pre-writing), staying focused on a task, sitting still, etc.
• Play: using toys, playing games with others, recreational activities, etc.

To help the child to participate fully in daily activities, the occupational therapist may do some of the following:

• Develop the child’s fine motor skills (e.g., scissor skills)
• Change the materials used for a task (e.g., velcro shoes instead of laces)
• Change the way a task is being done (e.g., breaking the task down into smaller steps)
•  Suggest changes to the environment (e.g., reducing visual distractions)

The therapist will also educate the family and caregivers on suggestions and tools to help the child.

To refer a child  fill out the referral form (see the website) and either fax, email, or drop off at the therapies office. Any person directly connected to the child is able to refer. If the referral source is not the caregiver, then verbal or written consent is needed before submitting.