Overview

Back on Track uses Occupational Therapists in Mental Health to help increase function, productivity and capacity through the prescription of graded tasks and activities.

 

Natalie talks about Back on Track

Natalie Bottroff was selected as a joint winner for the WorkCover SA Health and Rehabilitation Achievement Award. Here, Natalie talks about the Back on Track Mental Health Occupational Therapy service relating to this award.

 

Multi award-winning program

Service Provider of the Year 2015

Health and Rehabilitation
Achievement Award

 

Back on Track is different

Back on Track is different to traditional rehabilitation for mental health injury. It is an in-home program with regular contact from the Occupational Therapist in Mental Health every one to two weeks.

The Occupational Therapist in Mental Health will work with the individual to set goals and then develop a series of graded activities and tasks to complete. Bite-size goals, together with prescribed tasks and activities which build on each other, will assist in achieving the greater goal of better health and improved functioning.

 

About Occupational Therapy

Occupational Therapy is a profession concerned with promoting health and wellbeing through occupation. Occupations are the everyday meaningful activities that people engage in or occupy themselves in.

The primary goal of Occupational Therapy is to identify a person's strengths and barriers to functioning and, in turn, enable them to participate in necessary and desired activities (occupations) and fulfil life roles. Occupational Therapists are registered health professionals with an interest in improving the functional abilities of their clients (client as referred to here relates to the person undertaking the service).

Back on Track teaches skills

Back on Track is a holistic program which works to identify and address the many factors which can influence the ability to function, including:

• Work and productivity skills
• Life skills
• Leisure and recreation skills
• Social skills

 

About Mental Health Occupational Therapy

Mental Health Occupational Therapy is a client-centered approach to gaining an understanding of the various factors relating to a person's occupations (occupation as referred to here relates to tasks) and environment that influence the mental health and subsequent functioning of that client.

Occupational Therapists in Mental Health assess which occupations are most meaningful to their clients. This approach enables the client to identify and engage in occupations in both work and home settings.

Engagement in meaningful and purposeful occupations contributes to the client regaining a sense of achievement, self-esteem and wellbeing that may have been affected by their injury/illness.

Why Mental Health Occupational Therapy?

Occupational Therapists in Mental Health work alongside other health professionals and service providers to deliver services in the following ways:

• Assessment of functional ability which involves assessing the client’s ability to manage work and home roles and participate actively in these pursuits.
• Identification of barriers to a client’s functioning within their usual environments (work and/or home) and developing collaborative strategies to overcome these barriers.
• Interventions to assist clients to overcome practical challenges including independent life skills, home maintenance, self care, leisure and health/fitness goals using focused occupational strategies.