Professional Services

How does your injury or condition impact on your daily function?

An activities of daily living (ADL) assessment analyses an individual's functional performance in the areas of personal, self-care, domestic, general home maintenance activities in and around the home and their work or school occupations.

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An Occupational Therapist (OT) determines:

• Whether task performance can be modified and if so, is able to recommend task modification education

• Whether an individual requires any equipment to increase their independence and the length of time this would be required for.  

• Whether any care assistance is required for a specific period of time (e.g. following surgery), and provides specific recommendations.  The assistance may include: domestic assistance, attendant care assistance, gardening/ home maintenance assistance, etc.

• Whether home modifications are required. 

This assessment can be performed under CTP, NDIS, WorkCover schemes, TPD, Lifetime care and support,  medico-legal and Comcare.

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Recommendations made are always the option that provides the highest level of independence, with equipment and modifications being recommended to aid the person in the performance of their activities of daily living within their chosen occupation.

Occupational Therapist assessments form part of NDIS applications. Please find below some regularly asked questions about how OT contribute to the process.

Areas an OT may assess and report on may include:

• Function

• Mobility

• Cognition

• Daily Living

How does the OT contribute to NDIS planning?

An OT report will be used to collect information on function and areas of need for you to supply to the NDIS.

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The OT will need to assess these areas and report care items to support the individual in achieving their goals.

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How do I prepare for my OT assessment?

The OT will need to assess you in person in your normal living environment.

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For the OT to comment on health conditions and their relationship to function, the latest medical reports from GP and specialist/s is important.

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What does it cost?

Sun Occupational Therapy is a private practice and invoice clients per hour. 

Consults are invoiced to client on the day of consult.

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For reports, the practice will quote the time required prior and invoice separately.

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For Sun Occupational Therapy proceed with any service, we will require a signed agreement for services.

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Please contact Jean to request a client intake form.

Do I need a referral?

The OT will need all relevant information to complete a thorough assessment. A letter of referral from your GP will be useful as will as any reports which relate to condition and function.

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If you are self referring, we will require a completed intake form. Please contact Jean for the form to be sent to you.

Sun Occupational Therapy offer home based services to clients in the adult disability sector. Everyone has different goals and we are pleased to work with you to build a sustainable OT plan of service.

What are your goals?

For some, this may be a better home environment, more supports or easier access to the bathroom or back yard. For others, it might be learning to catch a bus, meeting a group of friends at the movies or cooking a meal.

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An OT will look at all of your goals and work through a plan that can include family, friends or formal supports.

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An OT will look at all the things you can do and strategize a treatment plan to address those things that limit your daily activities.

What will the OT do?

Occupational Therapists conduct a range of assessments to review and “assess” the needs and suitability of aids and equipment.

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OT Assessments can include:​

• Daily living, services and care

Treatment may include:

• Upper limb therapy

• Lower limb exercises

• Seating assessments

• Wheelchair and mobility assessments

• Transfer assessments

Occupational Therapist may introduce tools to address:

• Financial management

• Daily activities and diary planning

• Medication management

• Socialisation

• Relaxation

Occupational Therapist can train and review formal and informal care supports. This may include:

• Lifter training

• Manual handling training

• Carer support and information

NDIS Rates & Payment

Sun Occupational Therapy accept referral for clients who are self or plan-managed. All items are billed on account, with 14 day terms. We do not require payment on the day of service.

Frequently Asked Questions?

Can you visit me at home?

Yes, we are a mobile OT service. We are pleased to meet you at the place that best serves your treatment or assessment.

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My NDIS plan is not in place, what is your private fee for OT?

If your plan is not yet in place, we can provide OT services at a private fee.

Please call Jean to discuss your needs and private fee referral.

Occupational therapy in the workplace

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Occupational therapists play an important role in helping workers return to work following an injury or illness, including stress.

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Their role in the workplace covers:

• Injury management and rehabilitation – including worksite assessments, injury risk assessments, occupational rehabilitation counseling, and early intervention rehabilitation.

• Injury prevention – including manual-handling assessments, claims history reviews, ergonomic assessments, development of alternate duties, work-conditioning programs, and the redesign of workplaces.

• Training – in areas like stress management, manual handling, back care, safe work practices, the introduction of new equipment, workstation adjustments, and developing pause exercises, where you take a break for exercise at work. you take a break for exercise at work.

OT Expert Witness - Always Prepared

Comprehensive and highly professional medico-legal reports.

Occupational therapists are trained to view each person holistically. This means that Jean can consider the impact on injury or illness on all aspects of a person’s life – home, work, leisure and psycho-social. Jean’s reports encompass all of these areas and she undertakes a comprehensive examination detailing the effects of the incident or injury on the individual across all these aspects of their life.

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A medico-legal assessment and report may be required for cases or claims with:

• Workers’ Compensation (Workplace Injuries)

• Compulsory Third Party insurers (Motor Vehicle Accident Injuries)

• Public liability (Personal Injuries)

• Medical/Professional negligence

• NDIA Administrative Appeals Tribunal

• Medical Negligence

• Care and Needs Assessments

The medico-legal assessment is a thorough assessment that determines a client’s level of function post-injury.  It takes into consideration both personal and domestic activities of daily living and how these have been impacted by injury and/or loss.

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A comprehensive report can then be supplied providing information and recommendations on:

• Pre injury and current functional status

• Pre injury occupational status (personal, domestic and community)

• Functional capacity

• Home environment including environmental barriers to independent function

• Equipment, assistive devices and/or technology

• Care needs – personal, domestic and therapy.

• Our assessments consist of interviews, observation, functional assessment, and use of various indices and assessment protocols

• Jean regularly travels within Australia, visiting individuals in their homes. Home visits are also invaluable in assessing firsthand how an injured person is managing in their home environment.

Is your injury or disability impacting on your ability to drive?

Driver assessment and rehabilitation is recognized as an important practice domain for occupational therapists.

 “Assessing Fitness to Drive” (Austroads & National Transport Commission, 2016) provides physicians in Australia and New Zealand with a decision-making guideline regarding fitness to drive for patients with medical conditions. These guidelines indicate that a practical on-road assessment may be required to determine fitness to drive. On-road assessments, usually conducted by occupational therapists with specialised training, are generally considered optimal for determining fitness to drive because functional driving performance is assessed in real traffic. Therefore, the test has high acceptability.

An Occupational Therapy Driver Assessor is able to:

• Determine a client’s suitability to undergo a driving assessment and inform them of the driving assessment process.

• Work within relevant state and national legislation, license authority guidelines, and third-party funding body guidelines to assist the client to achieve safe and legal driving where possible, and withdraw driving where required.

• Conduct comprehensive off-road driver assessment (including screening of vision, physical, cognition, perception, sensory-motor, hearing and communication capacities, and road law knowledge).

• Conduct safe and legal on-road assessment procedures working in collaboration with the driving instructor.

• Determine the impact of a driver’s medical condition, injury, disability, or age-related changes on driving performance.

• Provide recommendations regarding fitness to drive.

• Prescribe vehicle modifications or assistive technologies.

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• Determine capacity for rehabilitation and coordinate a driver rehabilitation programme where suitable.

• Document findings, plans, driver rehabilitation interventions, and intervention outcomes.

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• Determine capacity for rehabilitation and coordinate a driver rehabilitation programme where suitable.

• Document findings, plans, driver rehabilitation interventions, and intervention outcomes.