The Occupational Therapist Gift is a non-profit organisation that offers a wide range of therapeutic gifts to help people cope with their own health issues.
It offers occupational therapy gifts to people aged 18 and over in more than 60 countries around the world.
The organisation’s head of medical practice, Dr. Susan Ewing, said the gift was a way for the organisation to give back to people and help those who need help.
“A lot of people are trying to get their own things done, or have their own hobbies, and they want to do something for people who are struggling,” Dr. Ewing said.
“They don’t want to put their lives on hold for that and they don’t know that they can do it themselves, so we can help them with that.”
She said the organisation had been providing occupational therapy in Australia since its inception in 2011 and had grown rapidly.
“In terms of people accessing their occupational therapy, it’s just exploded.
It’s now been around for 15 years, and we’ve had some phenomenal growth,” Dr Ewing told the ABC.
“It’s become a bit of an industry, it has a lot of clients.
We’ve got a good balance between the people that need help, but also people that have their hobbies, their interests.”
Dr Ewings research showed that about 25 per cent of people with a mental health condition who got the gift had an improvement in symptoms over a 12-month period.
“There’s a lot more people out there that need it and they’ve never been given it before,” she said.
The charity said it was particularly important for people with mental health issues to have the gift.
“We think that it’s important for mental ill people to have some type of gift that allows them to cope with whatever is happening,” Dr Wyshynski said.
Ms Ewing welcomed the increase in demand for occupational therapy and the popularity of the gift with people.
“The amount of demand for it has been increasing so much, so it is a very important gift,” she told the BBC.
“And I think that the gift has also helped to address a lot people’s concerns that their mental health is being neglected.”
Dr Wieshynski added that it was also important to remember that the occupational therapy gift was designed for people of all ages.
“I think we should not be surprised that some people find it really helpful, but it’s also really important to make sure that it is appropriate for people that are at that age,” she added.
The Occupation Therapist Gifts website offers an interactive map of the different gifts available to people across Australia.
It is also possible to create your own occupational therapy experience by visiting the organisation’s website and entering your personal details.
