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Occupational Therapy

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Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine

Synonyms

Activities of daily living (ADL); Ergotherapy; Health science; Life skills; Occupation; Occupational science; Participation; Rehabilitation; Therapy

Definition

World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT) defines occupational therapy as a “client-centered health profession concerned with promoting health and well being through occupation. The primary goal of occupational therapy is to enable people to participate in the activities of everyday life. Occupational therapists achieve this outcome by working with people and communities to enhance their ability to engage in the occupations they want to, need to, or are expected to do, or by modifying the occupation or the environment to better support their occupational engagement” (World Federation of Occupational Therapists [WFOT], 2010, para. 1)

Description

Occupational therapy, founded in 1917, has become a well-established profession within the areas of health and rehabilitation with over 60 member countries in the WFOT....

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References and Readings

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Correspondence to Carolyn Baum .

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Baum, C., Carey, L., Polatajko, H.J. (2013). Occupational Therapy. In: Gellman, M.D., Turner, J.R. (eds) Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1005-9_905

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1005-9_905

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