Enabling young people’s life skills
Providing mobile Occupational Therapy assessment and rehabilitation intervention for children and young people who have sustained an acquired brain injury.
FAMILY CENTRED APPROACH
GOAL DIRECTED SERVICES
ENABLING YOUNG PEOPLE TO ACHIEVE PROGRESS & PARTICIPATE IN THEIR LIFE ROLES
ENABLING YOUNG PEOPLE TO ACHIEVE PROGRESS & PARTICIPATE IN THEIR LIFE ROLES
A compassionate, experienced, and skilled professional
who will go above and beyond to engage the young person to work towards achieving their potential.
As a fully mobile therapist, Fiona brings her expertise directly to her clients' homes, preschools, and schools.
This allows her to address challenges within the child's everyday environments, promoting practical and functional solutions.
Meet Fiona Sampson,
Paediatric & Adolescent
Occupational Therapist.
With over 25 years’ experience, Fiona's career has been focused on providing comprehensive Occupational Therapy rehabilitation services to children and young people who have sustained an acquired brain injury through motor vehicle accidents.
She also has extensive experience in providing case management to coordinate rehabilitation services for children and adolescents through the NSW CTP insurance scheme.
Fiona's professional journey has encompassed both public health and working in private practice settings, allowing her to gain a well-rounded perspective.
She has spent a significant portion of her career working at The Children's Hospital Westmead, where she provided specialised services to infants, children and young people with Neonatal Brachial Plexus Palsy, Cerebral Palsy and Acquired Brain Injury. She has worked in inpatient rehabilitation and supported children with their transition back to school and their everyday lives.
Fiona has substantial experience providing therapy and intervention for infants, children and young people with neurological disabilities primarily in the areas of neonatal brachial plexus palsy, cerebral palsy and acquired brain injury. Fiona has extensive experience working within both the NSW CTP Scheme and Lifetime Care and Support Scheme.
Over time, Fiona has developed a deep understanding of the unique needs of her clientele, enabling her to tailor her approach to individual cases effectively based on the latest best practice evidence. As part of multidisciplinary rehabilitation teams and services, she collaborates closely with other healthcare professionals to ensure holistic and coordinated care.
Collaboration lies at the heart of Fiona’s therapeutic philosophy. By fostering open communication and building a strong rapport with her clients and their families, Fiona creates a supportive intervention partnership.
Fiona values the importance of active participation, and strives to engage the young person and their care givers in their therapy journey, empowering them to take ownership of their progress and achievements.
Fiona is dedicated to providing evidence-based interventions tailored to each individual's unique needs and goals. Fiona’s service provision includes key occupational therapy areas including; fine motor skills, handwriting, engagement in play, participation at school, cognitive functioning, activities of daily living and the use of equipment and technology to enable engagement in life roles.
She is passionate about enabling children and young people to engage meaningfully in their daily activities, supporting them to develop confidence and a sense of achievement despite the challenges they face in their rehabilitation journey.
Qualifications
Bachelor's Degree in Applied
Science Occupational Therapy
Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) registered
Occupational Therapy
Australia member 2023
Certified In
Cognitive Orientation to Occupational Performance (CO-OP Approach)
Certified Practitioner
Assisting Hand Assessment Certified Rater
Mini Assisting Hand Assessment Certified Rater
Trained In
Perceive, Recall, Plan, Perform System of task analysis
How Fiona Can Help
Motor Skills
Assessment and therapy focused on:
Developmental fine motor skills
Pre writing, handwriting and keyboarding skills
Enabling participation at school to engage in practical subjects
Developing confidence and independence with everyday fine
motor skills at home
Management and rehabilitation
of neurological upper limb
disabilities, such as spasticity,
tremor, dystonia, brachial plexus
palsy, in-coordination, and weakness
Implementing adaptive equipment to facilitate fine motor function
Function
Developing cognitive and executive functioning skills in everyday environments such as home and school
Implementing strategies to support attention and concentration in learning environments
Interventions to build capacity with planning and organisation skills for participation at school and home
Providing education and collaboration with school based learning support teams to maximise the effectiveness of interventions
Independence
Progressing with developmental skills such as self help skills, dressing, eating, managing belongings, engaging in morning and afternoon routines
Assessment and prescription of equipment to enable improved independence in everyday tasks
Supporting transition to school, high school, leaving school and moving onto University or Tafe
Independence with Instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) to progress towards being able to live independently in the community
Tools and strategies for a smooth progression towards the next stage of life
Growth
Providing a focus on each young person's unique strengths and aspirations while addressing everyday physical, cognitive and personal challenges
Promoting growth, development, rehabilitation and progress with functional, relevant interventions that are aligned with client goals and values
Co-author of the "Guide for Therapists working with Neonatal Brachial Plexus Palsy (2020)
Speaker at the Lorna Ramos Course on Brachial Plexus Palsy
(New York 2018)
Speaker at the teacher education day “Educating Children with an ABI” presented by Brain Injury Rehabilitation services (SCHN 2022)
I'm passionate about working with children and young people who face the many challenges in their rehabilitation post ABI.
Providing Occupational Therapy services which supports a return to school and being able to participate and manage everyday tasks is extremely rewarding!
- Fiona
