Ranch Ehrlo’s clinical team provides a variety of therapeutic services to enhance the social and psychological well-being of our clients.

As part of a three part blog series, guest bloggers will explain the processes and benefits of speech/language pathology, occupational therapy, art therapy, and animal therapy.

This week, occupational therapist Lisa Brownstone talks about what she does to provide therapeutic programming to youth and adults at the Ranch.

Occupational therapy
Occupational therapists believe that each person has unique abilities, wants, and needs. Every person has intrinsic dignity, worth and the right to participation. Life is made up of meaningful everyday activities and occupations such as cooking, cleaning, playing sports, interacting with others, doing the laundry, and playing games. Occupations are part of every moment of our lives – they describe who we are as babies, children, teens, and adults, whether at home, school, at work or in the community. They give us meaning and affect how we feel about ourselves. Occupational therapists work to optimize participation in those meaningful activities.

As the occupational therapist at Ranch Ehrlo I work alongside the team in supporting residents. Instead of something that happens once or twice a week, therapy becomes a lived experience; part of the daily life of the residents.

I focus on four areas of practice: physical abilities, sensory processing, daily living skills, and social-emotional abilities. In each area I first of all provide an assessment, this allows me and the team to get a better understanding of the person and help develop positive interventions and goals. I go on to develop recommendations and a written report. Once I have completed the report I review it with staff, and sometimes the resident and parents. We then work on implementing the recommendations.

In the physical area I might recommend exercises, seating, modifications to clothing, the bathroom, or stairs in a house so that it is more accessible for the residents. Some individuals have feeding and swallowing difficulties. Together with the speech language therapist (Terrea Woodward-Friesen) we assess this area so that residents can eat without the concern of choking. In the sensory areas I might recommend a weighted blanket, fidgets, vestibular exercise and activities, deep pressure activities, vibration, special seating. In daily living skills I might recommend special utensils, adapted or modified ways of bathing, completing hygiene activities, shopping, housecleaning, cooking, having fun in the community, and/ or working. In the area of social–emotional skills I might work with the team to help the person come down off of flight–fight-freeze and build skills towards self-regulating of emotions. I provide support to the education side of Ranch Ehrlo too, coming into classrooms, working with staff, helping Community Vocational Education Program (CVEP) assess work skills of those involved in that program. I spend a lot of time ordering equipment.

I like being busy and having variety in my work. I am always busy here and my work is as varied as are the individuals who live and work at Ranch Ehrlo!