2020 Colorado Revised Statutes
Title 12 - Professions And Occupations
Article 270. Occupational Therapists and Occupational Therapy Assistants
Section 12-270-104. Definitions.

[Editor's note: This article 270 is in a one-year wind-up period. For further explanation regarding the wind-up period, see the editor's note following the article heading.] As used in this article 270, unless the context otherwise requires:

1. "Activities of daily living" means activities that are oriented toward taking care ofone's own body, such as bathing, showering, bowel and bladder management, dressing, eating, feeding, functional mobility, personal device care, personal hygiene and grooming, sexual activity, sleep, rest, and toilet hygiene.

2. "Aide" means a person who is not licensed by the director and who provides supportive services to occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants.

3. "Instrumental activities of daily living" means activities that are oriented toward interacting with the environment and that may be complex. These activities are generally optional in nature and may be delegated to another person. "Instrumental activities of daily living" include care of others, care of pets, child-rearing, communication device use, community mobility, financial management, health management and maintenance, home establishment and management, meal preparation and cleanup, safety procedures and emergency responses, and shopping.

4. "Low vision rehabilitation services" means the evaluation, diagnosis, management,and care of the low vision patient in visual acuity and visual field as it affects the patient's occupational performance, including low vision rehabilitation therapy, education, and interdisciplinary consultation.

5. "Occupational therapist" means a person licensed to practice occupational therapyunder this article 270.

6. "Occupational therapy" means the therapeutic use of everyday life activities withindividuals or groups for the purpose of participation in roles and situations in home, school, workplace, community, and other settings. The practice of occupational therapy includes:

(a) Methods or strategies selected to direct the process of interventions such as:

1. Establishment, remediation, or restoration of a skill or ability that has not yet developed or is impaired;

2. Compensation, modification, or adaptation of an activity or environment to enhanceperformance;

3. Maintenance and enhancement of capabilities without which performance of everyday life activities would decline;

4. Promotion of health and wellness to enable or enhance performance in everyday lifeactivities; and

5. Prevention of barriers to performance, including disability prevention;

(b) Evaluation of factors affecting activities of daily living, instrumental activities of daily living, education, work, play, leisure, and social participation, including:

1. Client factors, including body functions such as neuromuscular, sensory, visual, perceptual, and cognitive functions, and body structures such as cardiovascular, digestive, integumentary, and genitourinary systems;

2. Habits, routines, roles, and behavior patterns;

3. Cultural, physical, environmental, social, and spiritual contexts and activity demands that affect performance; and

4. Performance skills, including motor, process, and communication and interactionskills;

(c) Interventions and procedures to promote or enhance safety and performance in activities of daily living, instrumental activities of daily living, education, work, play, leisure, and social participation, including:

1. Therapeutic use of occupations, exercises, and activities;

2. Training in self-care, self-management, home management, and community and work reintegration;

3. Identification, development, remediation, or compensation of physical, cognitive,neuromuscular, sensory functions, sensory processing, and behavioral skills;

4. Therapeutic use of self, including a person's personality, insights, perceptions, andjudgments, as part of the therapeutic process;

5. Education and training of individuals, including family members, caregivers, andothers;

6. Care coordination, case management, and transition services;

7. Consultative services to groups, programs, organizations, or communities;

8. Modification of environments such as home, work, school, or community andadaptation of processes, including the application of ergonomic principles;

9. Assessment, design, fabrication, application, fitting, and training in assistive technology and adaptive and orthotic devices and training in the use of prosthetic devices, excluding glasses, contact lenses, or other prescriptive devices to correct vision unless prescribed by an optometrist;

10. Assessment, recommendation, and training in techniques to enhance functional mobility, including wheelchair management;

11. Driver rehabilitation and community mobility;

12. Management of feeding, eating, and swallowing to enable eating and feeding performance;

13. Application of physical agent modalities and therapeutic procedures such as wound management; techniques to enhance sensory, perceptual, and cognitive processing; and manual techniques to enhance performance skills; and

14. The use of telehealth pursuant to rules as may be adopted by the director.

7. "Occupational therapy assistant" means a person licensed under this article 270 topractice occupational therapy under the supervision of and in partnership with an occupational therapist.

8. "Supervision" means the giving of aid, directions, and instructions that are adequateto ensure the safety and welfare of clients during the provision of occupational therapy by the occupational therapist designated as the supervisor. Responsible direction and supervision by the occupational therapist shall include consideration of factors such as level of skill, the establishment of service competency, experience, work setting demands, the complexity and stability of the client population, and other factors. Supervision is a collaborative process for responsible, periodic review and inspection of all aspects of occupational therapy services, and the occupational therapist is legally accountable for occupational therapy services provided by the occupational therapy assistant and the aide.

9. "Vision therapy services" means the assessment, diagnosis, treatment, and management of a patient with vision therapy, visual training, visual rehabilitation, orthoptics, or eye exercises.

Source: L. 2019: Entire title R&RE with relocations, (HB 19-1172), ch. 136, p. 1392, § 1, effective October 1.

Editor's note: This section is similar to former § 12-40.5-103 as it existed prior to 2019.