OT Dude Occupational Therapy Podcast OT Dude

We have two special guests in this special practice area episode of the podcast. Naomi Folkerts is an occupational therapy student attending Creighton University’s distance program based out of Denver, CO. Her doctoral capstone is with Health Promotion Partners, a mobile outpatient and driving rehabilitation company. This capstone is focused on developing skills in a specialized area of practice as well as increasing awareness through community outreach and online presence. Naomi is joined by, Terri Cassidy, an occupational therapist, Certified Driver Rehabilitation Specialist, and the owner of Health Promotion Partners. Learn about the misconceptions about driver rehab and how you, the generalist OT, can play a role in promoting the independence of our clients for community mobility from recommendations to screening to referrals.

In this episode, Kelsey shares her story about how she balanced life and overcame her obstacles with Crohn's Disease, finances, and early motherhood to be successful in a rigorous occupational therapy program. Kelsey is an inspiration of how things don't always work out and to take baby steps towards your goals!

My special guest in this episode is Ricky Ramirez, OTD, OTR/L, an instructor at the RUSH University Department of Occupational Therapy. We discussed his published research with Latinx cancer survivors, the implications of this research, and how to provide OT to underserved populations such as the LGBTQ+ community. You will also learn about some useful holistic resources that can be used for these communities. Check the show notes on http://otdude.com/podcast for the resources mentioned in this episode.

Are you interested in school-based OT as a therapist? In this episode, Alicia Stufoso and Lisa Nye join us as we discuss how school-based OT has changed, what it is currently like, and how we may need to rethink our approach to this setting. Alicia and Lisa maintain private practices as co-owners of Careerfull LLC, an AOTA-approved provider and educational services company. They also coordinate an annual conference for school-based OTs, called The Best Practices in School-Based OT Annual Conference. We learn about the benefits of attending this conference and why so many OTs find it such a valuable experience.

In this episode, we learn about what OT is like in the UK and discuss dance as therapy, social media for OT, and finding opportunities in our everyday life.

In this episode, I speak with Curtis, an OT student who has an extensive background working in mental health. We had a great conversation about how we each found OT as males in the profession, how using ourselves as a form of therapy can be therapeutic, and the topic of burnout vs. having fun in OT school.