How is occupational therapy defined in Utah?

Practice of occupational therapy" means the therapeutic use of everyday life activities with an individual:

• That has or is at risk of developing an illness, injury, disease, disorder, condition, impairment, disability, activity limitation, or participation restriction; and
• To develop or restore the individual's ability to engage in everyday life activities by addressing physical, cognitive, psychosocial, sensory, or other aspects of the individual's performance.

What is included in the practice of occupational therapy?

"Practice of occupational therapy" includes:

• Establishing, remediating, or restoring an undeveloped or impaired skill or ability of an individual;
• Modifying or adapting an activity or environment to enhance an individual's performance;
• Maintaining and improving an individual's capabilities to avoid declining performance in everyday life activities;
• Promoting health and wellness to develop or improve an individual's performance in everyday life activities;
• Performance-barrier prevention for an individual, including disability prevention;
• Evaluating factors that affect an individual's activities of daily living in educational, work, play, leisure, and social situations, including:
• Body functions and structures;
• Habits, routines, roles, and behavioral patterns;
• Cultural, physical, environmental, social, virtual, and spiritual contexts and activity demands that affect performance; and
• Motor, process, communication, interaction, and other performance skills;
• Providing interventions and procedures to promote or enhance an individual's safety and performance in activities of daily living in educational, work, and social situations, including:
• The therapeutic use of occupations and exercises;
• Training in self-care, self-management, home-management, and community and work reintegration;
• The development, remediation, or compensation of behavioral skills and physical, cognitive, neuromuscular, and sensory functions;
• The education and training of an individual's family members and caregivers;
• Care coordination, case management, and transition services;
• Providing consulting services to groups, programs, organizations, or communities,
• Modifying the environment and adapting processes, including the application of ergonomic principles;
• Assessing, designing, fabricating, applying, fitting, and providing training in assistive technology, adaptive devices, orthotic devices, and prosthetic devices;
• Assessing, recommending, and training an individual in techniques to enhance functional mobility, including wheelchair management;
• Driver rehabilitation and community mobility;
• Enhancing eating and feeding performance; and
• Applying physical agent modalities, managing wound care, and using manual therapy techniques to enhance an individual's performance skills, if the occupational therapist has received the necessary training as determined by division rule in collaboration with the board.

What is specifically excluded from the practice?

N/A

Are there any special trainings or requirements?

An occupational therapist shall complete formal specialized wound care training or certification, including didactic and clinical components, if engaging in the care and management of interruptions in skin and tissue integrity.

Reference

Utah Code § 58-42a-102

Utah Admin. Code R156-42a-601