Occupational Therapy with Hippotherapy
Commonly asked questions about
WHAT IS OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY WITH HIPPOTHERAPY?
According to the American Hippotherapy Association (AHA),"The term hippotherapy refers to how occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech-language pathology professionals use evidence-based practice and clinical reasoning in the purposeful manipulation of equine movement to engage sensory, neuromotor, and cognitive systems to achieve functional outcomes. In conjunction with the affordances of the equine environment and other treatment strategies, hippotherapy is part of a patient's integrated plan of care."
WHO WOULD BENEFIT FROM THIS TREATMENT?
The use of the equine partner in the occupational therapy treatment is intended for children and adults with minor to more severe neurological, sensory, communicative and / or motor skill impairments. Examples of medical diagnosises that lead to one or more of these impairments are: Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Apoplex/Stroke, Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASS), Cerebral Palsy (CP), Developmental Delay of Motor and Cognitive Skills, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD), Developmental Dysplasia of the Hip, Multiple Sclerosis (MS), Parkinsons Disease (PD), Recovery from chemotherapy, Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD), Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), Trisomy 21 (Down- Syndrome).
WHY USE A HORSE FOR THERAPY?
While sitting astride the horse the client experiences an intensive and rhythmical motor and sensory multidimensional input which impacts numerous systems in the human body. The pelvic movement of a horse is almost identical to the human walk, transferring about 100 inputs per minute. To this day, this movement cannot be imitated by any other therapeutic medium.
Some individuals who require ongoing therapeutic interventions lose motivation on engaging with their traditional sessions. Involving a horse with this type of individual can serve as a tremendous motivation to achive the clients personal goals. Using the equine parter is an exciting experience for most people and encourages a joyful interaction throughout the therapeutic process. The horse is often percieved as a partner who understands and supports while taking away their focus on the disability. Some clients (especially kids) often refer to this intervention as "riding my horse" rather than "going to see my therapist".
The following video was taken at the Shea Center, CA. It analyzes the horse and human movement and points out the impact on the client sitting astride.
WHAT IMPOROVEMENTS CAN BE ACHIEVED THROUGH OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY WITH HIPPOTHERAPY?
We take pride in offering a holistic treatment and decline to reduce individuals to a certain challenge. The following list serves to depict the various effects of Occupational Therapy with Hippotherapy.
| Focusing on motor function, people challenged with: | can see results regarding: |
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| Focusing on sensorimotor perception, people challenged with: | can see results regarding: |
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| Focusing on psychological function, people challenged with: | can see results regarding: |
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HOW CAN I GET STARTED?
The first step is to contact us to arrange an initial assessment to determine wheter or not a prescription is required. Providing a client centered intervention, we like to offer you a home visit prior to the treatments. While we get to know you in your every day life setting during the home visit, we define your goals for the therapeutic intervention.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us!