Erika del Pozo, MOT, OTR/L, holds a BA in Dance and Master’s in Occupational Therapy from Nova Southeastern University. Erika has practiced in outpatient pediatrics for five years and also has experience working with older adults with progressive neurological conditions. Erika created a modified-dance curriculum for adults with Parkinson’s Disease in Boca Raton, FL in 2016. Erika served as an adjunct professor at Nova Southeastern University for three semesters, collaborating with Dr. Lambdin-Pattavina to teach Occupational Analysis and Human Interactions. Erika’s special interests include promoting work well-being and burnout prevention in healthcare. She is CEO and founder of Joy Energy Time, a wellness community dedicated to empowering healthcare professionals to grow in their wellness practices and advocate to improve the industry. She is also the creator and co-host of the Burnt Out to Lit Up Podcast, a holistic wellness show for healthcare professionals. Erika has worked with several distinguished continuing education agencies such as Occupationaltherapy.com and MedBridge Education, creating short and long evidence-based courses around holistic and multi-level approaches to address burnout and mental health in healthcare. She has also presented on burnout at both regional and national occupational therapy conferences.

Connect with Erika:

• ​ Via Email - Erika@joyenergytime.com
• Facebook Page - https://www.facebook.com/joyenergytime/
• Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/joy.energy.time/
• LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/erikadelpozo/
• Website/blog - https://www.facebook.com/joyenergytime/

Crystal Cabrera, who is known on social media as The Brainy OT, became an occupational therapist in 2015. Her first jobs were in pediatrics; she worked per diem OT positions at a private outpatient clinic and at a prescribed pediatric extended care clinic (PPEC). After a little more than a year as an OT, Crystal sought out opportunities to work with the adult population. In 2016 she accepted a position at a large community hospital with a Level I Trauma Center and Certified Comprehensive Stroke Center. Since then, she has dedicated her practice to the neurological population and attained the certification of Certified Stroke Rehab Specialist.

Connect with Crystal:

• Email - thebrainyot@gmail.com
• Instagram - @TheBrainyOT

Do you know what a long-hauler is? According to the World Health Organization (WHO), people with COVID-19 typically recover from the condition in about two weeks' time, but there are a number of individuals who continue to experience symptoms and/or continue to test positive for the virus for much longer - even 100+ days in some cases. This group of people is being referred to by medical personnel as the long-haulers, and experts aren't entirely sure why those who fit this description can't shake the disease.
 
On this episode, physical therapist Barry Mangione shares about his experience after he was diagnosed with COVID-19 and as a long-hauler. As a physical therapist since 1991, Barry's story provides unique insight into the lived experience of a long-hauler as well as the distinct role of occupational therapy in supporting individuals in this group.
 
Besides being a PT, Barry is also a musician, an author, and a podcaster. He lives in New York with his wife and their family. Through his podcast, Self-Help Rockstar Show, Barry features music, interviews, and his own brand of self-help advice in order to raise self-awareness and to inspire people to go out and live their best lives every day. In his self-help book No Easy Answers: A Book of Life-Changing Questions, Barry shares his personal success story with readers so that they, too, can achieve personal transformation.

Resources from this episode:

• Barry's band: Blue Alien Mystic
• Barry's book: No Easy Answers: A Book of Life-Changing Questions
• Barry's podcast: Self-Help Rockstar Show
• Dr. Gabor Maté - https://drgabormate.com/

Connect with Barry:

• Email - barrymangione1@gmail.com
• Twitter - @barrymangione
• Website/blog - www.barrymangione.com

​On this episode, second-year occupational therapy students Bailey Diprima, Serena Khiantani, and Pam Ponce talk about the outcome of their work in a course in OT school on evidence-based practice. Their study looked at the outcome of medical interventions used with children ages 4-18 for treatment of medulloblastoma, a malignant (cancerous) type of brain tumor that originates in the cerebellum. 

Bailey, Serena, and Pam are students in the Master's degree OT program at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis, TN.

Brittany Ferri has been an occupational therapist for 4 years, during which time she has developed a specialty in mental health. She founded her business, Simplicity of Health LLC, a year ago and began providing services such as health writing, community health education, corporate wellness seminars, consulting, and private pay treatment. Around the same time her company was founded, she also got more involved with teletherapy. Since this time, she has not only provided telehealth treatment to many clients but has also helped create OT programs within several existing telehealth platforms. Brittany is also the author of a textbook entitled "Effective Therapy Documentation" and a children's book educating kids on teletherapy, called "Why is there a person in my computer?" Additionally, Brittany serves as an adjunct professor at Nazareth College and has guest lectured at many universities on the topics of documentation, mental health, and health literacy.

Connect with Brittany:

• Email - rsssferri@sbcglobal.net
• Facebook Page 
• LinkedIn 
• Website - Simplicity of Health 

Recommended resource:
Why is There a Person in My Computer? [Brittany's recently released children's book on teletherapy]

Meredith Castin, PT, DPT, is a physical therapist who has developed a self-paced online course to guide therapists through the process of finding gainful employment in non-clinical positions. 

Meredith has been a PT for ten years, during which time she worked in outpatient orthopedics, inpatient rehab, acute care, and home health settings. She entered the non-clinical space in 2015, starting out as a rehab liaison and co-creating NewGradPhysicalTherapy and NewGradOccupationalTherapy. 

Since then, Meredith has moved entirely into the content creation world. She has written for OT Potential, WebPT, MedBridge, Breg, Janssen, MD Revolution, Student Doctor Network, and many other health and rehab brands. These days, Meredith runs The Non-Clinical PT, where she provides career education and job postings for PT, OT, and SLP professionals looking to launch non-clinical healthcare careers. She is passionate about therapists and assistants remaining invested in their professional identities as rehab clinicians, even when they leave direct patient care. 

Connect with Meredith:

• Twitter - @nonclinicalpt
• Facebook Page - https://www.facebook.com/TheNonClinicalPT/
• Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thenonclinicalpt/
• LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/meredith-castin/
• Website/blog - https://thenonclinicalpt.com/

Melissa LaPointe is an occupational therapist-turned-consultant  from the UK who helps OT practitioners transition from burnt-out clinicians to thriving, purpose-driven entrepreneurs.  After running a brick-and-mortar practice for five years, Melissa transitioned to full-time online business ownership and is now location independent.  She helps occupational therapists around the globe to market and sell their digital products and coaching programs with confidence.

On this episode, we talk about coaching as a therapeutic approach in occupational therapy, burn out, and mindset supporting success as an entrepreneur. 

Connect with Melissa:

• Email - info@melissalapointe.com
• Instagram - @melissamlapointe
• FB Page - https://www.facebook.com/melissalapointeinc/
• Website/blog - www.melissalapointe.com

One thing that many people don't realize is that, as one of the big things that occupies our time, sleep is an occupation. In fact, sleep is a vital part of wellness as research indicates that deficits in sleep are linked to accidents, chronic disease, early mortality, and reduced quality of life and productivity (CDC, 2015). On this episode of the podcast, occupational therapists Stacy Smallfield, DrOT, OTR/L, BCG, FAOTA, and Kathy Yang, OTD, discuss the role of occupational therapy in supporting sleep and sleep hygiene in OT students and others. 

Stacy is an Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy and Medicine and Assistant Director of Entry-Level Professional Programs in the Program in Occupational Therapy at Washington University School of Medicine. She  has been an occupational therapist for over 20 years, working in a variety of adult physical rehabilitation settings before transitioning to academic education. She has experience teaching a wide range of occupational therapy course content and has collaborated with AOTA’s Evidence Based Practice Project on a number of systematic reviews and practice guidelines related to older adults and aging. Along with her students, she also studies the health and well-being of occupational therapy students. She was named to AOTA’s Roster of Fellows in 2015.
 
Kathy is a recent graduate from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Her work in occupational therapy student wellness has included researching sleep health and developing a practice model for a student wellness program at WashU.



Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2015). Insufficient sleep is a public health problem. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/features/dssleep/

Resources & recommendations:

• Exploring Sleep Hygiene in OT Students [recent publication by Stacy & Kathy]
• Why We Sleep, by Matthew Walker [book by a neuroscientist]
• Occupational Therapy's Role in Sleep [AOTA resource]

Connect with Stacy and Kathy:

• Stacy's email
• Kathy's email
• Website

 Trish Williams, BA, BHScOT(c) is an occupational therapist and the owner and CEO of Spring OT, ​a multi-disciplinary practice in which OT is the lead service provider, in Calgary in the province of Alberta, Canada. Trish is also an educator at the University of Alberta, a coach for OT Entrepreneurs, and the co-founder of the upcoming OT Entrepreneur Summit 2020. She has been an OT for over 25 years and holds a bachelor's degree in kinesiology from the University of Western Ontario and in health science from McMaster University. Trish's current passions include working with individuals with sensory processing disorder and sharing information about the role of OT in pediatric mental health, moving from therapist to CEO, finding order and strategy after the hustle of a start-up, and leading OTs into the confidence required to be business leaders for each other.

Resources & Recommendations from the episode:

• OT Entrepreneurship Summit
• The E-Myth Revisited by Michael E. Gerber*
• The E-Myth Revisited by Michael E. Gerber*
• Melissa LaPointe’s business consulting and courses
• Mind Your OT Business podcastwww.mindyourotbusiness.com/podcast
• Instagram accounts to follow -
  • Her Incredible Mindset
  • Succeed on Purpose