As we celebrate World AHP Day 2024 , it’s an ideal time to recognise the diverse roles that Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) play in healthcare and the common thread that connects many of these roles: the neuroscience of the senses.
Whether you’re receiving care from an occupational therapist, physiotherapist, speech and language therapist, or even exploring healing through art, music, or dance therapy, the human senses are often at the core of the therapeutic process. Understanding how our brains process sensory information has revolutionized healthcare, offering new ways for AHPs to support people in their recovery, well-being, and participation in everyday life.
What is Sensory Integration, and related Neuroscience?
At its most basic, sensory integration and the related neuroscience refers to studying how the brain processes information from our senses. This includes sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell, but also lesser-known senses like vestibular (head movement), proprioception (awareness of body position) and interoception (internal body sensations like hunger or heartbeat). These senses constantly provide feedback to our brains, influencing everything from our movement and communication to our emotional regulation and mental health.
For AHPs, this understanding is vital. Many therapeutic interventions are grounded in sensory processing—helping people interpret and respond to sensory information in ways that promote healing, learning, and participation.
The Role of the Senses in Different AHP Professions
1. Occupational Therapists: Sensory Integration in Daily Life
Occupational therapists (OTs) are experts in understanding how our senses affect our ability to perform daily activities. Dr. Ayres, an occupational therapist, conducted groundbreaking work and research in this field from the 1960s to 1989, and her legacy has been continued by others. OTs use sensory integration therapy in various settings worldwide, from helping children with sensory processing difficulties to supporting adults with mental health challenges. They aim to help people grow, develop, adapt, and thrive in their environments, enabling them to participate in everyday life. Whether it’s adjusting sensory input to enhance focus or developing strategies to manage sensory overload, OTs understand the power of our senses.
Watch these webinars about Sensory Integration across the globe here: https://www.ice-asi.org/education-in-asi
2. Physiotherapists: Movement and Sensory-Motor Pathways
Physiotherapists help restore movement and function by tapping into the sensory-motor pathways that connect the brain to the body. Proprioception, or our sense of body position, is key to many physiotherapy interventions. By working with this sense and the vestibular system, physiotherapists guide people through recovery, helping them rebuild strength, balance, and coordination after injury or illness.
3. Speech and Language Therapists: The Senses of Communication
For speech and language therapists (SLTs), the senses of hearing and sight are fundamental. Auditory processing and visual cues play significant roles in communication and language development. SLTs work with individuals who may have difficulty processing sensory information related to speech, swallowing, eating & feeding, signing and using sensory strategies to improve eating and feeding, swallowing, signing and language and communication skills.
4. Dietitians: The Sensory Experience of Eating
Our relationship with food is deeply rooted in sensory experiences. Dietitians consider factors like taste, smell, and texture when working with people with sensory sensitivities around food. By understanding how these senses interact with nutrition, dietitians create personalised plans that cater to both health needs and sensory preferences.
5. Art, Music, Dance Movement, and Drama Psychotherapy: The Senses and Emotional Expression
Creative therapies like art, music, dance movement, and drama psychotherapy take advantage of the sensory pathways that help us express emotions. Art therapists use visual and tactile senses, while music therapists tap into auditory and rhythmic experiences. Dance movement psychotherapists engage the body’s proprioception, and drama therapists use role-playing and storytelling to activate imagination and sensory engagement. These therapies allow people to process emotions in ways that go beyond verbal expression, providing an essential outlet for healing.
6. Psychology: How Sensory Neuroscience Shapes Mental Health
Psychologists often explore how sensory experiences impact emotions and behaviour. Sensory input plays a critical role in regulating emotions, processing trauma, and interacting with the world around us. Understanding the sensory components of mental health conditions like anxiety, PTSD, or autism has led to new therapeutic approaches that integrate sensory awareness and mindfulness into cognitive and emotional therapies.
7. Radiographers
Radiographers carefully manage sensory environments during procedures such as MRI or CT scans, where the enclosed space and loud noises can overwhelm patients. By understanding how sensory overload can heighten anxiety, they use techniques to create a more comfortable and calming experience. This includes dimming lights, using earplugs or calming sounds, and providing clear communication, all aimed at reducing the sensory strain on patients. Radiographers’ work shows how sensory awareness is crucial in ensuring patient well-being during high-tech medical imaging.
8. Paramedics
Paramedics, in contrast, operate in fast-paced, unpredictable environments where they must rely on quick sensory assessments to make life-saving decisions. Whether responding to a severe injury or medical emergency, paramedics use sensory cues—such as a patient’s pain level, skin colour, and breathing patterns—to evaluate conditions rapidly. Their ability to process sensory information in real time is essential for delivering immediate care, stabilising patients, and ensuring safe transport to medical facilities. Sensory awareness is at the heart of their critical, front-line work.
Uniting AHPs Through the Senses and the Neuroscience
Though AHPs may specialise in different areas, the underlying neuroscience of the senses unites their work. From restoring physical function to supporting emotional well-being, sensory neuroscience provides a shared framework for understanding how we experience and navigate the world.
This World AHP Day, we celebrate the contributions of all AHPs and the powerful role that sensory neuroscience plays in their work. Whether they help people recover from illness, navigate everyday challenges, or process complex emotions, AHPs are vital to creating a more sensory-aware, person-centred healthcare system.