Daily activities are the measure of real recovery. Occupational therapy is a rehabilitation profession that helps people perform the everyday activities they need and want to do when physical, cognitive, or emotional problems interfere.

Therapists assess skills, environment, and goals, then provide training, adaptive equipment, and environmental modifications. Practice settings include hospitals, schools, workplaces, and homes. Conditions range from stroke and arthritis to developmental disorders and mental illness.

The focus is function—dressing, cooking, working, school tasks—rather than impairment alone. Collaborative goal-setting keeps therapy meaningful. Early occupational therapy after injury or illness reduces long-term disability and supports return to valued roles.

• Therapy that restores ability to perform daily activities
• Addresses physical, cognitive, and emotional barriers
• Uses training, adaptation, and environmental change
• Centered on patient-defined functional goals