Pediatric Physical Therapy VS Occupational Therapy

Today we're going to talk about pediatric physical therapy vs. occupational therapy — what each does, how they differ, and how they can help your baby reach their developmental milestones.

Pediatric physical therapists work with a wide range of conditions and ages. It can range from working with preterm infants in the NICU all the way up to 16-year-olds, helping them transition into college or the workforce.

A pediatric physical therapist focuses a lot on developmental skills. They help kids who are developmentally delayed for whatever reason, based on pre-diagnosis and analysis. With pediatric physical therapy, you help your baby meet their fine and gross motor milestones.

If your baby goes to physical therapy, there are multiple environments where that may happen — in school, in the home, or in a hospital or outpatient clinic. The most effective therapy has always involved families and caretakers. The more involved families are, the better the outcome actually becomes.

The beauty of pediatric physical therapy is that it is a very creative way of helping babies move and meet their developmental milestones. If a therapist is working with a toddler and they look like they're having a really great time, it's actually really good therapy. The therapist is thinking: how do I want this child to move? How do I want their muscles to work? How do I get this baby to roll over? With kids, you have to be creative — sometimes you have to make them laugh and integrate all of that into what kids consider fun.

In baby physical therapy, there is a lot of understanding of motor movements and how a baby will grow up. Part of growing up is not only learning motor skills, but as they get older and their body changes, thinking about how their movement may change or what their needs may change to be.

Parents who have a baby in physical therapy should always expect to be involved in the actual process. Most of the physical therapy that should happen, happens in your own home. This has to be integrated into your daily lives because movement has to be learned — it's not learned within an hour session once a week in therapy. It takes a group effort to make sure it happens and helps your baby.

Occupational therapists work with babies and children from 0–12 years of age who experience difficulties in carrying out everyday activities. Occupational therapists call these activities "occupations" and they include self-care, play, socializing, and things children need to do at day care, at school, and at home — such as sitting, writing, eating, and dressing.

Occupational therapy helps children become more independent in these activities. The occupational therapist will look at how the child uses their hands to carry out tasks — how they move, sit, and stand, and their ability to do a variety of activities.

The occupational therapist will also look at the underlying skills required to do these activities, such as the child's visual perception, how they move their body, and how they interpret sensory information from the environment.

Your baby's occupational therapist should use a wide range of assessments and observations as well as discussion with the parents, and where appropriate, also with the school.

Around the age range of 0–4 years, occupational therapists focus on the basic skills that a baby needs to be able to play, such as positioning, seating, and hand use. This includes the skills they will require for going into nursery and develop in the future.

Occupational therapists also work with parents to address any difficulties they may have with managing their child's daily activities, such as bathing, dressing, sleeping, and more.