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and select a provider whose training and  
experience directly support those goals. 
Cognitive changes: Memory,  
attention, and mental fatigue 
Certified brain injury specialists and certified 
cognitive assessment and training professionals 
evaluate attention, memory, organization, and 
processing speed. Interventions often blend  
organizational skills, task sequencing, problem-
solving, and decision-making to support  
cognitive retraining. Intervention is often  
embedded in real activities such as daily  
scheduling, medication setup, and grocery shop­
ping. Therapists may introduce strategies to  
reduce cognitive load and make tasks more 
manageable. Overall, these practitioners focus 
on supporting working-memory and helping  
patients participate more confidently in daily life. 
Mobility and physical endurance 
Certified stroke rehabilitation specialists or 
holders of the board certification in physical  
rehabilitation or gerontology apply neurological 
movement and endurance principles to help  
individuals living with MS maintain strength, 
balance, and mobility. They offer skills training 
for safe transfers, mobility, and fall recovery.  
Environmental adaptations might involve  
selecting and fitting mobility aids (canes, rollators, 
and wheelchairs), adjusting seat and surface 
heights, and modifying tasks based on the  
person’s abilities. Throughout the session, thera­
pists monitor symptom triggers and match  
interventions to the person’s needs and  
capabilities to ensure both tolerance and safety. 
The larger goal is fall prevention and confidence. 
Seating and mobility / 
assistive technology 
Seating and mobility specialists and assistive 
technology professionals focus on optimizing the 
fit and positioning of mobility aids, so movement 
is energy-efficient, comfortable, and safe.  
Sessions often involve fine-tuning equipment to 
improve posture and reduce the risk of  
secondary complications, such as pain or  
pressure injuries. Training covers effective use of 
wheelchairs, scooters, and walkers. This includes 
efficient wheelchair propulsion, safe transfers, 
and the selection and setup of power-assist  
add-ons or alternate drive modes matched to  
terrain demands (speed, torque, slope). Clinicians 
may recommend and configure customized 
seating systems (cushions, backs, tilt or recline), 
custom controls, and walker accessories tailored 
to the person’s tasks and environments. 
Extremity function 
Certified hand therapists offer focused  
rehabilitation to restore arm and hand weakness, 
spasticity, and tremor. Intervention may include 
skills training in grasp-release, in-hand  
manipulation, 
and 
task-specific 
practice. 
 
Therapists 
may 
also 
target 
hand-eye 
 
coordination and body awareness – especially 
important when  sensation is reduced.  
Compensatory 
strategies 
can 
emphasize 
weighted or large-grip utensils, button hooks,  
stabilization techniques, and task simplification 
to reduce effort and tremor impact. Adaptation 
often involves custom orthoses (resting,  
antispasticity, and functional) and ergonomic  
set-ups with strategic positioning and stretching 
to manage tone and pain. For clients with 
swelling or circulation issues related to reduced 
activity or medication side effects, certified  
lymphedema therapists provide targeted care to 
reduce edema, restore range of motion, and  
improve comfort while protecting skin integrity. 
Low vision 
Optic neuritis and other MS-related vision 
changes (blurriness, diplopia, glare sensitivity, 
and field loss) can compromise safety and  
independence at home and in the community. 
Specialists in low vision and certified low vision 
therapists typically complete a functional vision 
evaluation, then tailor intervention to the  

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