The expert occupational therapists at Salem Health work with you to identify the daily activities that matter most. We’ll help you maintain or rebuild your skills to support your independence. You'll find:
Occupational therapists who work as part of specialized teams to provide neurologic and cancer rehabilitation.
Therapists who are board-certified in hand therapy with extensive experience.
Expert advice and training on devices to help you communicate and do daily activities, supporting your independence.
Evidence-based treatments to help you live your life to the fullest.
Occupational therapy can help you do everyday activities (occupations) after an illness or injury. These might include eating, cooking, using a computer, grooming and taking part in hobbies. By including meaningful activities in your rehabilitation, occupational therapy helps you to do the tasks you need or want to do at work, home and elsewhere.
Salem Health occupational therapists help you to regain the physical, social and thinking skills you need to do things that are important to you. Research shows that taking part in meaningful activities increases your well-being.
Our therapists will teach you to complete tasks in a new way and will suggest equipment to help you be as independent as possible. If you lose function in one arm, for example, they might show you ways to wash with one hand or suggest aids, such as a brush with a long handle.
Our therapists use an exercise-oriented approach with a focus on patient empowerment. Our treatments include:
Exercise: We'll teach you a variety of exercises to retrain your body to move normally, increase your range of motion, reduce muscle tension and reduce pain.
Splinting: Stroke, brain injury and other neurologic conditions can shorten and stiffen muscles. Our therapists will make or recommend splints to lengthen your muscles and increase your flexibility.
Vision rehabilitation: Vision loss can make it hard to do your usual tasks. Our therapists can show you how to use magnifying glasses, increased lighting and other tools. If you’ve lost vision on one side after a stroke, our therapists will teach you to scan your blind side quickly and completely to make sure you’re aware of what’s around you.
Equipment recommendations: We can recommend and teach you to use tools to increase your independence. These might include reachers, calendars or smartphone apps.
Help with daily activities: We will retrain you or teach you new ways to do daily tasks such as grooming, bathing, eating, making meals, using a computer and more. For example, if a stroke has affected your balance, you may learn how to dress while sitting on the edge of the bed.
We’ll also show you ways to think through and remember everyday tasks. We might suggest calendars, smartphone apps and alarms, and checklists that break activities into steps.
Fatigue management: We’ll show you how to save energy, pace yourself, and reduce stress and tiredness.
Amy McCollum, OT
Brittany Reavis, OT
Caroline Quist, OT
Diana Hodapp, OT
Diane Barker, OT
Gail Hudson, OT
Greg Traeger, OT, CHT
Leslie Dobkins, OT
Mark Healy, OT, CHT
Martha Wegner, OT
Sydney Fair, OT