Occupational therapists
Support and wellbeing
Occupational Therapy
When you are diagnosed with cancer and start your anti-cancer treatment, you may find that your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities is affected.
Our Occupational Therapists (OT) may work with you to help you prepare physically and psychologically for your treatment. This is called prehabilitation.
If you are an inpatient at our hospital, the OT’s will work with you if you’re experiencing difficulties with any daily activities, as a result of your condition or the treatment you are receiving.
The OT team can help you overcome all kinds of challenges, so that you can live as fully and independently as possible. This might involve learning new ways of doing things, or making changes to your environment to make things easier.
Prehabilitation
If you are having chemotherapy or radiotherapy before your surgery for oesophageal, pancreatic, bladder or ovarian cancer, you may be invited to prehabilitation. This service is only available to patients referred by their Consultant or Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS). You can read more about the programme by clicking here.
Inpatients
If you are in hospital and receiving inpatient care as a result of your cancer, you may be referred to our OT’s by your doctor or CNS. The team will be able to support you with any difficulties that you may be having, such as managing fatigue, shortness of breath and sleeping.
The team can also advise on strategies to help you manage everyday tasks, such as stepping out of the shower. They will work with you to understand what you want to achieve and will help you regain as much independence as possible. This will ultimately enable you to leave hospital.
Our OTs can organise equipment that you may need in order to carry out day-to-day activities. This can include a wheelchair to enable you to get out and about or smaller items, such as grabbers to assist you in picking up items.