"If you're at a dinner party and someone asks, 'What do occupational therapists do?,' the classic answer, is 'Please pass the potatoes,' " said Joan Thiel, OTR. "We do so many things. It just gets complicated to explain."

This month, we asked some to try anyway. Three pediatric occupational therapists discussed how they help young clients learn to help themselves and improve their lives.

Because playing is the "occupation" of young children, the OTs use games, toys, gym equipment and whatever else they can devise to help children who have disabilities or developmental delays. The children learn to dress and feed themselves, crawl, speak and interact with others.

When seen from a daily perspective, progress can seem slow. But, over the long haul, the gains can be dramatic, said Mary Jo Ray, MS, OTR-L.

"Each child and diagnosis is different," she said. "I worked with a child with severe autism who could not ... sit down for 30 seconds. Now he can sit at a table for 20 to 30 minutes at a time. He can sit down to dinner. To his family, that progress is huge."

Occupational therapy is part of an array of services provided to children (newborns to age 3) enrolled in the national Babies Can't Wait program. In Georgia, the program is administered by the Department of Human Resources under the authority of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act. Changes to Medicaid funding have made it harder for children to qualify for services, so occupational therapists try to cut through the red tape to find alternative resources.

"We know that therapy can make a difference. Our training is so broad, and there's always room to grow and learn more," said Kay Nelson, OTR, owner of Therapy Works. "When a child achieves his goals and no longer needs you — that's a wonderful thing."

Celebrating Nurses: On May 7, during National Nurses Week, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and ajcjobs will honor nurses at the third annual Nursing Excellence Awards banquet. Patients and co-workers nominated 305 Georgia nurses for the awards this year.

We're proud to congratulate this year's honorees: Starla Adamson of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston; Liz Bilinski of Athens Regional Medical Center; Phyllis S. Coker of WellStar Cobb Hospital; Ann Connor of Emory University's Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing; Kathleen Gamblin of WellStar Health System's STAT Cancer Clinic at Cobb; Celeste McConkey of Metro Atlanta Recovery Residences; Mary Anne Newkirk of WellStar Kennestone Hospital; Peter Roth of Grady Memorial Hospital; Christine Saggese of Northside Hospital; and Doretta Thomas-Fleet of DeKalb County Schools' Heritage Center.

Look for profiles of the honorees in the Celebrating Nurses special section in the Journal-Constitution on May 4. To learn more about the event, go to ajcjobs.com/celebrating nurses.

- Do you have any story ideas for Pulse? We'd love to hear more about your career and what you do after hours. Send e-mail to pulseeditor@ajc.com or call 404-526-2078.