Acute Occupational Therapy

Our purpose is to provide an Occupational Therapy Service which is responsive to the individual needs of our patients, their families and the community in which they live. Through a holistic and problem solving approach to assessment and treatment, we aim to facilitate the discharge planning process whilst improving and maintaining levels of independence and quality of life. This will be achieved through a standardised approach to assessment, rehabilitation, education and health promotion.

Service Provision:

In-patients who are referred to Occupational Therapy may participate in a range of practical assessments and treatments in order to help decide if they are ready to return home and to identify any services or equipment they may need to make this possible.

This may involve the need to contact family and carers and in some cases conducting visits to the patients home/living environment.

Where possible, the goal is to enable people to return to live as independently as possible within their own home/living environment.

Occupational Therapists can be found working within the Emergency Department and all wards across the Trust.

The service is also offered to out-patients with medical and neurological conditions, who must have been seen and referred by a Hospital Consultant.


  • Where do OT's work in the hospital?

    The occupational therapy staff work within teams in the following areas:-

    • Acute & Emergency Medicine
    • Acute Older Peoples’ Medicine & Early Rehabilitation
    • General Medicine & Surgery
    • Neurology In & Out-Patients
    • Orthopaedic In-patients
    • Oncology
    • Cardiology & Respiratory Medicine
    • Renal Unit
    • Intensive Care/High Dependency
    • Acute Stroke Services
    • General Medical/Falls/Neurovascular/Movement Disorders Out-patients
    • One-Stop Assessment Unit for Older People
  • Facilities

    Occupational therapy staff are based within the Trust’s purpose built occupational therapy departments at the Ulster, Lagan Valley & Downe Hospitals with access to a range of facilities allowing them to facilitate assessment and rehabilitation for those referred to the service.

  • Patient education sessions

    There are regular patient education sessions for a variety of conditions, including pre-discharge falls education class and an energy conservation class for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

  • Collaborative Working with the Health Community

    The Occupational Therapy Service has close working relationships with community-based colleagues. In practice, this means that patients can be provided with any essential equipment/gadgets or where it is necessary for discharge, arrangements made for any minor adaptations to be made within the home.

    In addition to this, patients can be referred on for any necessary ongoing assessment or rehabilitation in the community.

  • Referral

    All in-patient referrals to the occupational therapy teams are made by a member of the medical or nursing staff electronically via e-whiteboard. Referrals for certain categories of out-patients are accepted from GPs or other health care professionals based outside the Trust (for example, community occupational therapists or GP’s may refer for neurological splinting).

  • After referral

    Once medically fit to be seen, all our referred inpatients are seen by an occupational therapist as soon as possible usually within 24-48 hours.

    A weekend and public holiday service is provided at the Ulster & Lagan Valley Hospitals to ensure prompt assessment, continued rehabilitation and the facilitation of timely safe & effective discharge.

Occupational therapist making a hand support

Contact Details

Ulster Hospital

Call us(028) 9055 0467

Lagan Valley Hospital

Call us(028) 9263 3559

Downe Hospital

Call us(028) 4483 8045