Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

An Exploratory Survey Of Occupational Therapists' Role In Hippotherapy, Cristina Cerquozzi, Ericka Cerquozzi, Amy Darragh, Heather Miller-Kuhaneck

Occupational Therapy Faculty Publications

The term hippotherapy is derived from the Greek word for horse, or hippos. The American Hippotherapy Association (2007) defines hippotherapy as an occupational, physical, or speech therapy intervention strategy, using the movements of a horse, used as part of an intervention program to facilitate functional gain. In hippotherapy, therapists use the movements of the horse as a vehicle for improving clients' functional limitations. Hippotherapy is an intervention method mentioned in the occupational therapy literature more than 20 years ago (Engel, 1984) that has received minimal research attention within our field. Little is known about the role of occupational therapists in …