Occupational therapy is a health and social care profession which focuses on enhancing the everyday life skills and abilities of individuals who have physical, mental health, social or environmental needs. It is the only profession to practice across both physical and mental health, with an emphasis on daily occupations to support people to live as fully and independently as possible.
Occupational therapy is a different profession to occupational health, although both aim to support people in staying well at work.
You can find more information about occupational health in What is Occupational Health? from the NHS Health at Work Network.
Veterinary Anaesthetist Rachael shares how she returned to work and thrived with support from occupational health - read Rachael's story.
The occupational therapy profession is regulated by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). Its professional body is the Royal College of Occupational Therapists (RCOT).
RCOT describes an occupation as follows:
'An occupation is any activity that we need, want or like to do to live and to look after our physical and mental health, and our emotional and spiritual wellbeing. We do occupations from the moment we’re born, on our own or with others.
An occupation can be self-care, such as washing, eating or sleeping; productive, such as work, study, caring or domestic activities; and leisure, such as playing sports, hobbies or socialising.
We’re all different and so are the occupations that matter to us. They vary depending on our environment, interests and values, talents and skills. Our occupations also change throughout our lives.' (RCOT 2021)
Occupational therapists consider engagement in occupations as essential to life, bringing meaning, purpose and structure to people’s lives.
They view people as occupational beings: intrinsically active and creative, with a desire to engage in a balanced range of meaningful occupations that support their health and wellbeing. These may include personal care, leisure pursuits and vocations.
The goal of an occupational therapist is to support people to fulfil, or work towards fulfilling, their potential as occupational beings. They support individuals of all ages to overcome any barriers to their meaningful occupations.
Occupational therapists commonly help people who are living with:
Occupational therapists work across a variety of settings, including:
This video by the College of Occupational Therapists at the University of Brighton offers further insight into the role of occupational therapists: How occupational therapy can help people.
'Occupational therapy was founded upon principles related to the benefits of work and supporting people with health conditions to gain or return to paid employment.' (RCOT 2019).
Work can be an essential occupation for many people, safeguarding their health and wellbeing. Therefore, occupational therapists support people to remain in, return to, or obtain work. Each person is different, so occupational therapists work in a client-centred way.
Occupational therapists have the expertise to enable people to work by:
This may involve:
Part of an occupational therapist’s role is to explore any reasonable adjustments that can be made to occupations, ensuring they are achievable for a person with limitations.
This may involve supporting people to manage their health conditions and disabilities within the context of their living, work and social environments.
Examples of how an occupational therapist can support reasonable work adjustments include:
The Royal College of Occupational Therapists' report, Good work for good health: the difference occupational therapy makes (RCOT 2019), is a useful starting point for both employees and employers. It offers guidance on how occupational therapists can help someone with a health condition who is struggling in the workplace or is on sick leave and uncertain about returning to work.
The pages in this section were written by occupational therapy expert Professor Nicola Spalding - view Nicola's biography.
