Inpatient Occupational Therapy Services

A hospital stay can be scary and disorienting for many children. Our team of pediatric occupational therapists is here to help your child recover, grow, and develop, no matter why they are in the hospital. 

Services based on your child's needs

Heart

If your child has congenital heart disease or another complex cardiac issue, our occupational therapy team can help:

• Evaluate and treat feeding-related problems in infants and young children with complex cardiac issues, pre- and post-surgery.
• Evaluate development and functional skills and provide treatment to optimize positioning.
• Promote advances in developmental fine motor, visual motor, visual perceptual, sensory processing, cognitive, and self-help skills.
• Educate your family to prepare for going home from the hospital, including information on movement after heart surgery.

Orthopedics

If your child has undergone orthopedic surgery, including posterior or anterior spinal fusions, surgeries to repair arm or thigh bone (femur) fractures and hip dislocations with spica casting, our occupational therapists are here to help. We:

• Address self-care, dressing and other activities of daily living while following any precautions in place from your child’s surgery.
• Educate your family so you can help your child achieve the highest level of independence and manage your child’s care even with new movement precautions in place or a spica cast.
• Assess the safety of your child’s positioning for transport home. We provide recommendations for equipment needed or alternative transportation solutions.

Neurosurgery

If your child has undergone neurosurgery, including shunt placement or revision, tumor removal (resection) and placement of grid electrodes in order to map seizure activity in the brain, occupational therapy treatments focus on strength, coordination or sensory deficits to return your child to the highest level of independence.

After neurosurgery, an occupational therapist evaluates your child’s strength, coordination, sensory systems, and any impact on activities of daily living. We also evaluate the safety of your child’s swallow and feeding ability, depending on neurological status.

Pain Management

Occupational therapists will closely follow your child during treatment for conditions including back pain, complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), headache, and abdominal pain.

We create a schedule for your child to participate in a full day of activities. This includes occupational therapy, physical therapy, school, recreation therapy and time with a psychologist.

Our therapists also provide intensive treatment, including:

• Neurodevelopmental treatment (NDT)
• Orthopedic management of the painful area
• Functional activities
• Biofeedback
• Small group therapy

Cancer

If your child is admitted to the hospital for treatments such as chemotherapy or stem cell transplant, he or she is at increased risk for deconditioning from lack of normal activity and stimulation. This can result in developmental delay. Occupational therapists engage your child in developmentally appropriate play and activities of daily living to decrease this risk.

Neonatology

Occupational therapists are part of the developmental team that follows infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and other special care nurseries. We assess your baby for readiness and safety for feeding by mouth, and work closely your family to ensure a safe feeding plan while in the hospital and at home.

Eating Disorders

Occupational therapists in the Comprehensive Care Program help adolescents with eating disorders. We develop extensive behavior modification programs and provide treatment to promote healthy eating habits and appropriate daily routines, and run groups that address stretching, relaxation, and coping skills.

Talk to your child’s hospital care team to learn more about how we will be involved in your child’s care.