Occupational therapy assessment, specification and reporting for changes to the built environment — from a single grab rail to a level-access bathroom.
Most people stay at home longer than the house was designed for. Home modification is the work of closing that gap.
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Minor modifications are non-structural, quicker, and cheaper. Grabrails, lever taps, handheld shower rails, threshold and step ramps, non-slip treatments, additional lighting, second handrails on stairs, door hardware changes. Many can be completed within weeks.
Major modifications are structural, cost significantly more, and take considerably longer. Level-access showers, widened doorways, ceiling hoist installation and structural reinforcement, kitchen and bench height changes, external access ramps and pathways, bedroom relocation to a ground floor, and full bathroom reconstruction.
A large part of an assessment is establishing which of these is genuinely required. Major work is sometimes unavoidable and sometimes the result of nobody having properly considered a minor alternative.
If we only had one room to change, it would almost always be the bathroom.
It is where the most falls happen, where the surfaces are hardest and most slippery, where the tasks require standing on one leg and turning, and where people are least willing to accept help. It is also the room where a modification most reliably converts into someone staying at home rather than moving into care.
That is the frame we work from. The question is not "what could be improved" — most houses could be improved endlessly. The question is which specific change removes the risk or restores the task, for the least money and disruption.
Seek urgent clinical or medical review, not just a modification, if:
The home modification assessment takes around 60 to 90 minutes at home, and the person who assists day to day should be there if possible.
Your occupational therapist will observe the actual tasks — walking to the bathroom, stepping into the shower, sitting and standing, using the toilet, getting into bed — because how someone moves determines where a rail goes and at what height. Guessing produces rails that are decorative.
They will then measure and photograph the relevant areas, discuss options with you and how long it would take. Please note that wait times for home modifications may vary depending on the funding approvals. This can be from a few months to over a year.
You will receive a written report with specifications, and support through quoting and approval.
On timeframes, honestly: minor modifications commonly take weeks. Major modifications involve funder approval, quoting, scheduling and building, and frequently take several months. Where safety cannot wait that long, we recommend interim equipment or arrangements to bridge the gap, and say so explicitly in the report.
Modifications can usually still happen in a rental or a strata property, but they need owner consent, and sometimes body corporate approval, before work is approved or funded.
Raise this at the start rather than after assessment. We will write the report to describe the work clearly enough for an owner to understand what is proposed, and where reinstatement or reversibility is a condition, we take that into account when specifying.
Occupational therapists across Victoria (Melbourne and some regional areas), Queensland (Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Ipswich and Logan) and New South Wales (Sydney and Western Sydney), assessing in private homes, retirement villages and supported accommodation. If you reside in other areas, please reach out to us and we will accommodate for you.
Simple Process
Individuals, families and carers, GPs, support coordinators and plan managers, aged care providers, hospital discharge planners and builders can all refer.
Our team asks what is unsafe or no longer possible, whether there has been a fall or hospital admission, whether you own or rent, what funding is in place, and whether any quotes or previous reports exist. We explain what the assessment covers and what the report will and will not decide.
Functional assessment plus detailed measurement and photography of the areas involved.
A written report specifying the recommended work, with rationale written for your funder.
We work with builders and your funder through quoting and approval, and review quotes against the specification.
Got Questions?
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Contact inOne Healthcare on 1300 765 456, email info@inonehealthcare.com.au, or submit a referral online.
Monday to Saturday, 9:00am to 5:00pm. Closed Sunday.
Related: AT-HM Scheme Assessments · Assistive Technology Assessments · SIL, SDA & Housing Reports · After a Fall
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Make A Referral 1300 765 456 info@inonehealthcare.com.auReviewed by Anchalpreet Kaur, Occupational Therapist, OCC0002664853. Last reviewed 10/09/2026.
This page provides general information only and is not a substitute for individual clinical advice.