In children’s services, occupational therapists enable children and young people to engage with and participate in the occupations that matter most to them. Occupational therapists commonly categorise occupations under self-care, productivity, and leisure; for children, we often consider these as self-care, education, and play.
Occupational therapy aims to support children to build on skills to support their development and reach their goals as they grow. This is in collaboration with those around them, such as parents/ carers, families, school, nursery, and other professionals.
Many factors can influence a child or young person’s ability to participate in occupations and carry out tasks and activities in the way they need to want to or are expected to do. Sensory processing difficulties (sensory processing differences, sensory sensitivities, sensory preferences) are one of these factors, and can impact a child or young person’s ability to participate in and access their occupations. We have eight sensory systems; visual, auditory, smell, tactile, taste, proprioception, interoception, and vestibular. These eight senses all receive varying levels of input, and our bodies all process this input in different ways. The sensory information our bodies receive can differ depending on so many factors, and with this in mind, it has been established that those who know a child or young person best; their parents, educators, families; are in the best position to be supported to learn about their sensory systems and where their difficulties might lie.
When a child is experiencing sensory difficulties, many occupational therapy services, like ourselves, employ a targeted approach, providing live and pre-recorded sensory training sessions, advice, information on resources and support strategies directly to the child’s parents, educators, and others around them. This approach is in line with The Scottish Governments “Ready to Act” policy, which sought to increase access to occupational therapy, increase participation and engagement and partnership with those around the child, and with a greater focus on early intervention and prevention. This policy brought about a tiered approach for children and young people’s services; universal level that is for all- reinforcing a preventative approach and promotion of wellbeing, targeted level for those more likely identified as having needs that can be met through advice, learning workshops, specialist level where needs are not able to be met through either of the other levels.
We would like to take the opportunity to discuss new ways of working, new ideas, and innovations for occupational therapy and sensory processing differences. What opportunities are we as occupational therapy services missing out on?
Questions:
What is your current knowledge of the sensory systems and how they might impact a child or young person’s occupations?
What approach do you or your service currently follow if a child or young person requires support for sensory processing difficulties?
To what extent do you think children and young people are aware of their sensory systems and the influence of them on their daily life and activities?
What opportunities are there for occupational therapy to lead developments in universal and targeted approaches to sensory processing difficulties? What are we missing out on?
Sky is the limit! If you could make a change/ add something new/ do anything that would positively impact children and young people with sensory processing difficulties, what would it be?
OTalk 