Support with living at home (Occupational Therapy)
Contact Adult Social Care on 020 7332 1224 or email Adult Social Care (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm) or call 020 8356 8855 outside normal working hours.
Adult Social Care is about offering support to people who may otherwise have difficulties with normal daily tasks, from washing and cooking to socialising with friends and family.
Whether your situation is a result of disability, long-term illness or are finding things harder to do as you've gotten older, Adult Social Care is designed to allow you to continue to live well and independently for as long as possible.
Find the Occupational Therapy leaflet on our leaflet page.
Occupation refers to the daily activities that we do, such as getting out of bed, washing and getting dressed, making a meal and engaging in social events.
Occupational Therapists work with you, your family and carers using a strengths-based approach (which helps both you and the OT to identify where you already have strengths and support in your life), to assess what is important to you, to help you set some goals.
If appropriate you will be provided with equipment to enable you to carry out your daily tasks more independently.
If you feel that your care and support needs mean that you need help with completing everyday tasks then an Occupational Therapy Assessment may be needed.
The aim of Occupational Therapy is to help you achieve your maximum abilities.
Our specialist Occupational Therapy service works with you to identify goals you want to work towards, in:
- Personal care
- Meal preparation
- Accessing the community
- Sensory needs
- Personal safety
Occupational Therapy can assist adults with long-term needs and those recovering from a recent injury or illness.
The Reablement Service is Occupational Therapy lead and provides short term, intensive support to help you regain the skills, confidence and independence you may have lost due to an illness or period in hospital.
You can make a self referral or be referred by health professionals or your family, with your agreement.
If you are eligible, the Reablement Team can offer up to six weeks of short-term home care and support, which is free to all.
Following a period of Reablement, if you require ongoing support, you can be referred to a social worker who can advise on the best way forward.
Equipment
We may provide low-level equipment to support bathing and using the toilet or more complex equipment to support your moving and handling needs.
Equipment might help you to:
- enter and leave your home
- wash, bathe and use the toilet
- use living and sleeping areas
- use food preparation and cooking areas
- access an outdoor space
- reduce risks in your home for example: falls and fire
Minor Adaptations
We may recommend minor works that cost under £1000, such as grab rails or stair rails to reduce risk when you access essential facilities.
Major Adaptations
You may be assessed as needing adaptations costing in excess of £1000. OT will support you to identify suitable solutions and, if eligible, you may be able to access Disabled Facility Grant funding for these works.
Assistive Technology
To support your safety at home, Telecare solutions may be recommended. These include items such as monitored falls alerts, heat sensors, door exit alerts.
Rehabilitation
You may require input from Specialist Rehabilitation services such as Physiotherapy or community nursing. We can refer you to our partner services in the community to assess those needs.
Fire Risk
We can assess your fire risk and support referrals to the London Fire Brigade and offer equipment to manage those risks.
Housing
OT assesses the suitability of your home environment. If adaptations are not feasible, we can provide a report to support your long-term housing needs.
Support for carers
If your family supports your care needs at home, OT may be able to provide support to enable them to continue in this support role, at reduced risk.
The Occupational Therapy Service is made up of Qualified Occupational Therapists and Strengths-Based Practitioners. We work closely with our Social Work colleagues in Adult Social Care.
To contact us email the Adult Social Care Team or call 020 7332 1224.