What is Occupational Therapy?

Who are we?

We are the people dressed in black scrubs. There are 23 occupational therapists working at Nebraska Medicine with 18 inpatient and 5 outpatient therapists. We have therapists who experience working with all diagnoses and who are specifically specialized in hand therapy, lymphedema, burns, neurological-developmental treatment and pediatrics.

What Do We Do?

We inquire about a patient’s routine, environment, career, hobbies, roles, family and goals in order to provide client-centered care that is meaningful to each patient. We specialize in coming up with activities that provide the “just right challenge” for patients to be successful and also challenged.

We utilize positioning, upper extremity strengthening, family training, equipment evaluation and recommendations, training on compensatory methods, activities of daily living, enhancing functional activity tolerance, splinting and lymphedema management to assist patients with returning to their prior level of function. We are trained in standardized cognitive assessments in order to determine a patient’s safety awareness for discharge planning. We collaborate with the medical team, Volunteer Services, Child Life, Music Therapy and education specialists to maximize patient participation in therapy using motivating activities.

What Floors Do We Work On?

We cover most of the hospital population. You will find occupational therapists working with intensive care, medical surgical, cardiac, transplant, pediatric, orthopaedic, burn, neurology, telemetry, oncology, and trauma patients. We have two outpatient clinics at Nebraska Medicine - Nebraska Medical Center: one in Clarkson Tower, which specializes in neurological rehabilitation and pediatrics; the other at the Lauritzen Outpatient Center. There's also an outpatient clinic at Nebraska Medicine - Bellevue, specializing in orthopaedics and aqua therapy.

What Is the Ultimate Goal of Our Job?

Our aim is to help individuals return to their prior level of function before hospitalization to promote a good quality of life for each person. We hope to bring meaning back to life, aiding a patient in participating in important aspects of their life, despite disabilities or set backs. 

To schedule an appointment with an occupational therapist at Nebraska Medicine, call 800.922.0000.