The occupation of a child is to play, learn, grow and develop!
The Occupational Therapists at High Hopes work with infants and children up to the age of 13. They help empower the child and family to foster participation and independence in essential activities and skills. Occupational therapy treatment here uses play-based activities to develop important motor, cognitive, sensory and behavioural skills.

Development of these areas is targeted to improve participation in valued daily activities like dressing, feeding, writing, play and social participation. Interventions can include environmental modifications, positioning, use of adaptive equipment, remediation techniques, and client and caregiver education.

Our Occupational Therapy team is one of the best in Dubai and are experts in the following Occupational Therapy platforms:

• CIMT – CONSTRAINT INDUCED MOVEMENT THERAPY: This is where the child’s less-impaired hand or arm is constrained for 2-3 weeks to encourage the use of their affected hand or arm in repetitive, intensive daily therapy directed exercises and activities.
• HABIT – HAND ARM BIMANUAL INTENSIVE TRAINING: This is a form of functional training that focuses on improving the coordination of both hands using structured task practise embedded in bimanual play and functional activities.
• ADL – ACTIVITIES OF DAILY LIVING: These are an individual’s self-care tasks such as dressing, bathing, eating and grooming.
• AT – ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY: An assistive technology device is any item, piece of equipment or a product system, whether acquired commercially, modified or customised, that is used to increase, maintain or improve the functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities.
• SI – SENSORY INTEGRATION THERAPY: Sensory Integration is about how our brain receives and processes sensory information, thus enabling us to perform our daily tasks.
• Feeding Therapy: Problems addressed may include difficulty with physically bringing food to the mouth, sensory aversions, psychological eating disorders and dysfunction related to cognitive impairments.
• BEHAVIOUR SUPPORT: Using a behavioural approach to address difficulties a child or family may be experiencing. Various strategies are used included understanding antecedents, reinforcers and consequences, implementing reward or token systems and how to use positive praise to promote positive behaviours.
• Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI) APPROACH – Our Occupational Therapy team have completed additional study and training in CVI support and are able to incorporate a CVI approach into Occupational Therapy sessions as well as provide support to other disciplines to maximise therapeutic strategies. CVI is a visual dysfunction caused by damage to the vision processing centres of the brain. This damage is usually caused by trauma that results in a lack of oxygen or blood flow to the brain. It can also be caused by seizures, traumatic brain injury or other insults. It is not a vision impairment which affects the retina, iris, cornea, lens or optic nerve resulting in low vision or blindness. It is possible for someone to have both a vision impairment and Cortical Visual Impairment. CVI can improve with appropriate assessment and intervention. Our Occupational Therapists are able to help families understand how best to present visual information to their children to help them develop their visual processing. This may include using colour, light, movement, visual complexity and positioning.