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

Allison Chrestensen, MPH, OTR, is a licensed occupational therapist with over 10 years of experience specializing in cancer rehabilitation. After earning her Masters of Public Health degree, Allison worked in healthcare quality improvement, leading large-scale projects for Medicaid waiver programs and conducting training programs for providers. Inspired by her own patient experience after a catastrophic cardiac event, she co-created a Patient/Family Engagement-focused workshop series that has empowered healthcare organizations around the country to build models for partnership with patients and families. She has served as an advisory board member for the Canadian Patient Safety Institute and the Institute for Patient and Family-Centered Care and is currently faculty for The Beryl Institute for Patient Experience. Allison has a special interest in medical humanities and has trained internationally in mindfulness and narrative medicine practices through the University of Rochester’s Mindful Practice Program. She serves as a faculty member for Duke University’s Reimagine Medicine program, which aims to improve provider wellbeing and patient-provider relationships through the exploration of arts & humanities in medical training. Allison’s consulting company, Tandem Healthcare Solutions, offers “Replenishing the Well” workshops and talks, which teach creative and contemplative practices to help healthcare practitioners cultivate joy in work and reduce emotional distress.

Connect with Allison:

• ​Email - allison@tandemhcs.com
• Twitter - @allison_tandem
• LinkedIn - www.linkedin.com/in/allison-chrestensen
• Website/blog - tandemhcs.com

Resources and recommendations:

• An interview with Allison on "The Butterfly Effect"
• Taking the Long View of Patient Experience
• Medical Humanities chat group
• Just Roll with It - Beryl Instititue podcast episode on burnout
• TEDx Talk with Krisin Neff: The Space Between Self-Esteem and Self-Compassion
• White paper by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement on joy and work
• Mindful Practice training through the University of Rochester
• Replenishing the Well workshops 

Niccole Rowe, BA, COTA/L has 7 years of experience as an occupational therapy assistant with clinical experience working in various settings such as acute care, long term acute care, skilled nursing, and outpatient chronic pain treatment. She currently works as an adjunct faculty member at Roane State Community College in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. In 2019, Niccole ventured forth into entrepreneurship as a founding partner of Aspire OT which is a continuing education company that seeks to serve only the OT profession. Throughout her career, Niccole has exemplified leadership capacity through her impact on the OT profession in the development of future OTA leaders and advocating for OT’s role in the treatment of chronic pain. While serving on two leadership committees within AOTA along with her work on the student involvement committee for the Tennessee Occupational Therapy Association, she has advocated for OTAs and their roles in leadership. Her work to promote OT’s role in the treatment of chronic pain includes educating OT practitioners nationwide through presentations and 2 OT Practice Continuing Education articles. She has also presented nationally on the subjects of burnout and OT/OTA collaboration. Niccole was recognized in 2016 as the co-recipient of the AOTA Terry Brittell OTA/OT Partnership award and will be receiving the 2020 AOTA Gary Kielhofner Emerging Leader Award in Boston. She holds a BA in Communication from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with previous work experience in television news producing, marketing, and as a radio personality.

Connect with Niccole:

• ​Email - nrowe@AspireOT.us
• Twitter - @NiccoleOTA
• LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/niccoleroweota/
• Website/blog - www.aspireot.us

Resources & recommendations from this episode:

• The Coalition of Occupational Therapy  Advocates for Diversity (COTAD) Minority Mentorship Program (MMP)
• The Daily Stoic podcast
• Audio Darhma podcast

Rachel Russell, PhD, OT, is an occupational therapist, lecturer and researcher based at the University of Salford in the UK. With 18 years of experience of working in adult health and social care, she has been directly involved in the assessment and delivery of home modifications. Since 2011, her research has focused on the home modification process, particularly the role of occupational therapists in this process. During that time, Rachel developed the Home Modification Process Protocol, which helps occupational therapists to explains their role in this field of practice as a design and construction process.

Connect with Rachel:

• Via email: r.c.russell@salford.ac.uk
• On Twitter @brontot

Resources & recommendations from this episode:

• Article by Rachel on The Development of a Design & Construction Protocol
• The Housing Enabler Screening Tool
• The Stark Lab "I Hope" Kit 
• Occupation-centred, occupation-based, occupation-based: same, same or different? [article by Ann Fisher]

Robin Akselrud, OTD, OTR/L, has fifteen years of experience in a variety of clinical practice areas. Robin is a certified early intervention provider and has worked in several treatment settings, including schools, home care for medically fragile infants and children, and hand therapy and splinting for infants and toddlers. In addition to her clinical work, Robin was an Assistant Professor/AFWC in the MSOT program at Hofstra University from 2017-2019 and recently joined the BS/MS program at LIU-Brooklyn as an Assistant Professor. Robin has also served as an adjunct professor at LIU, York-CUNY and at Touro College for the past seven years. In 2011, Robin founded an OT outpatient facility, Forward OT PLLC, for both children and adults in Brooklyn.
 
In 2018, Robin also established the OT program at a primary care facility for an underserved community in Williamsburg, Brooklyn- ParCare Community Network.  She is also a consultant for The Lighthouse Guild and recently co-authored an AOTA online CEU course focusing on treatment of vision deficits in children. Robin is currently the Leadership and Management Coordinator for the AOTA Home and Community Health Special Interest Section. Robin has presented her research at the 2018 AOTA conference in Salt Lake City and at the 2018 AOTA Education Summit in Louisville. Her publications include “Advocating for Occupational Therapy in Preparation for the Patient Driven Groupings Model”, SIS Quarterly Practice Connections, 2019, 4(2), 14-17 and “The value of home health occupational therapy practitioners in home modifications”, SIS Quarterly Practice Connections,2019, 4(1), 17–19. Dr. Akselrud holds a Master of Science from Touro College in Bay Shore, NY and a Doctor of Occupational Therapy from Quinnipiac University in Hamden, CT.
 
Robin recently started the Ask the Therapists program and a student-run podcast called My OT Journey podcast. She is currently writing two books geared towards OT students and new grads to be published in 2020. 

Connect with Robin:

• Via email
• Facebook Page - My OT Journey
• Instagram - @myotjourneypodcast

Resources & recommendations:

• Everything is Figureoutable [book], by Marie Forlio
• My OT Journey [podcast]