On The air by Stephanie Lancaster

04.19.2024

SnapType: How the Idea of One OT Student is Changing the World (Episode 132)

On this episode, occupational therapist Amberlynn Slavin and her husband Ben Slavin share information about SnapType, an app created based on an idea Amberlynn had on a Level I fieldwork clinical rotation while she was in occupational therapy school at...

02.20.2024

Resiliency and Mental Illness (Episode 131)

Liz Grace is the pen name of an occupational therapist living from southwestern Ontario, Canada. She lives and works with a mental illness called schizoaffective disorder. She navigates the OT world despite profound hearing loss and cochlear implants. Liz has...

12.20.2023

The Moxie OT on The CO-OP Approach (Episode 130)

On Episode 130, Sarah Zera, OTD, OTR/L, shares the story about how she discovered and fell in love with occupational therapy and discusses her work as a mobile- and community-based practitioner and insight about how to bring moxie to one's...

03.22.2022

Promoting Self-Determination in Children (Episode 129)

Occupational therapist Amy Coopersmith, MOT, OTR/L, MAEd, has worked as an educator and OT for more than 25 years. She currently works as a lecturer on topics related to children’s independence and positive mental health. For 17 years, she worked...

03.02.2022

The Leadership Pathway of an Occupational Therapy Assistant (Episode 128)

Occupational therapy assistant Amy Mahle is passionate about promoting the occupational therapist/occupational therapy assistant (OT/OTA) collaboration, uniting and motivating OT practitioners, advocating for occupational therapy, and finding solutions. She is the founding OTA Program Director at Rowan-Cabarrus Community College in...

02.22.2022

The Power of Professional Membership & Representation (Episode 127)

Vikram Pagpatan, MS, OTRL, ATP, CAS, BCTS, EdDc is a practicing Asian-American occupational therapist from New York City. He is a full time Assistant Professor and Admissions Coordinator at SUNY Downstate’s MSOT program as well as an adjunct lecturer at...

02.18.2022

Branching Out in Business: Working as an Occupational Therapy Clinical Specialist (Episode 126)

Mike Jankowski has been an occupational therapist since 2011 and has spent the majority of his career working with the pediatric population in start-up therapy clinics. In November of 2020 Mike started working at the EMR company SimplePractice as their...

01.01.2022

Improving Communication in Occupational Therapy Via a Digital Tracking & Monitoring System (Episode 125)

Laura Simmons is the CEO and Founder of Theratrak, a company that offers a digital platform enabling allied health professionals including occupational therapy practitioners to more efficiently track participant progress in between treatment sessions. She is also a passionate pediatric...

12.24.2021

Time Management (Episode 124)

For this interview, I brought back the guest from Episode 119 so we could dig deeper into the topic of time management for clinicians and clinical practice owners and managers.Jamey Schrier, P.T. is an author, former practice owner and founder...

12.16.2021

Occupational Therapy & Community Partnerships (Episode 123)

Lydia Cremer Kite is an occupational therapist who has experience in a variety of settings including skilled nursing facilities, subacute rehabilitation, outpatient rehabilitation, long term acute rehabilitation, community based, along with ergonomics, injury and prevention. She has a focus in...

12.05.2021

The Incredible Power of Hope (Episode 122)

On this episode, we talk about the importance of the support provided by therapists during rehab and the incredible power of hope.Cindy Kolbe has been a lifelong disability advocate—even before her youngest daughter’s spinal cord injury. In her memoir,...

11.05.2021

The Occupational Therapy Assistant as a Collaborative Partner and a Leader (Episode 121)

Kimberly Kearney, COTA/L, has been an occupational therapy practitioner since 2003. She has worked in Skilled Nursing, Rehab, Memory Care, Acute Care, Home Health, Community Health, and Early Intervention settings. Most recently, Kim has been working in Home Health in...

10.31.2021

Partnering with Community Day Center Facilities to Build Capacity for OT (Episode 120)

Kaitlyn Cremer, OTD, MOT, OTR/L, has been an occupational therapist for over 10 years. She has worked in a variety of settings including geriatrics, pediatrics, acute-care, acute-rehabilitation and in low vision and workplace wellness and ergonomics. She earned her Bachelor of...

07.09.2021

The Mindshift for Practice Growth (Episode 119)

Jamey Schrier, PT, is an author, former physical therapy practice owner, and founder of Practice Freedom U. PFU solely focuses on helping practice owners work less, earn more, and reignite their passion for patient care. His book, The Practice Freedom...

06.18.2021

Boots-on-the-Ground Community Accessibility Ratings: Introducing the Ability App! (Episode 118)

Hailey Scandin is a third-year student in the Occupational Therapy Doctoral Program at Belmont University in Nashville, TN. She is currently in her final semester of OT school and is working on completing her Capstone project with Ability App. Hailey...

06.06.2021

Critical Disability Studies & the Politics of Intervention in Healthcare (Episode 117)

Susan Mahipaul is an occupational therapist, an educator, a researcher, and a disability and health naviagator and advocate who completed a PhD from McMaster University in Hamilton, ON in Rehabilitation Science (2015) and a clinical Master’s in Occupational Therapy from...

06.01.2021

Addressing the Occupational Needs of Children and Families from Underserved Communities with a History of Complex Trauma (Episode 116)

Karen Park, OTD, OTR/L, BCP, SWC, CLE, is an occupational therapist with extensive experience in pediatric practice in a variety of service settings including early intervention, clinic, school, hospital and outpatient children’s mental health. Dr. Park is Board Certified in...

03.19.2021

The Crafting OT Studio (Episode 115)

Jennifer Renker, OTR/L, is an occupational therapist who works as a travel therapist, traveling across the U.S. to provide services to in clinics that are short staffed and in need of assistance. She graduated with a Master’s degree in Occupational...

03.05.2021

Advancing Universal Design through Partnership between Occupational Therapy and Engineering (Episode 114)

Nancy Peters, OTR/L, has been an occupational therapist for over 45 years. She attended the University of Buffalo at a time when there were not many occupational therapy schools in the country and the profession was fairly young. Upon graduation,...

02.05.2021

Pedagogy of Care: Tools for Disability Justice in Teaching & Learning (Episode 112)

Danielle Lorenz is a PhD candidate in the Department of Educational Policy Studies at the University of Alberta which is located in amiskwaciwâskahikan, which is what is currently called Edmonton, Alberta. Danielle's doctoral research focuses on settler colonialism in Alberta's...

01.22.2021

The Role of Occupational Therapy in Working with People with Ostomies (Episode 111)

Charlotte Foley is an occupational therapist living in Alaska, who feels that occupational therapists and physical therapists have a greater role to play than they currently do in working with people with ostomies. She has a passion for supporting fellow...

01.06.2021

Creating Systemic Change in the Occupational Therapy Profession (Episode 110)

Arameh Anvarizadeh, OTD, OTR/L, is an occupational therapist and a leader in the occupational therapy profession. An alumna of the University of Southern California (USC), Dr. Anvarizadeh earned her BS, MA, and Doctorate in Occupational Therapy with a minor in...

12.31.2020

The Functional Pelvis (Episode 109)

Lindsey Vestal is an occupational therapist and is the founder of The Functional Pelvis, the first in-home pelvic health practice in New York City run by an occupational therapist. She has helped thousands of people overcome chronic pelvic health challenges...

12.22.2020

Health, Wellness, & Community for People with Parkinson's Disease (Episode 108)

On Episode 53, Stephanie Goodman, an OT practitioner from Kansas City, MO, shared about her work as a coach at The Parkinson's Exercise and Wellness Center in Overland Park, KS. On this episode, two individuals with whom she works -...

12.14.2020

Computer Simulation Training in Occupational Therapy Education (Episode 107)

Occupational therapist Allison Sullivan, DOT, OTR/L, was the recipient of the 2017 Catherine Trombly Award for Excellence in Research and Education from the Massachusetts Association of Occupational Therapy and the 2018 Faculty Excellence award from American International College. She is...

12.07.2020

A Path of Entrepreneurship: Leveraging What You Know to Start a Business as an Occupational Therapy Practitioner (Episode 106)

Tanya Peterson, MS, OTR, has been an occupational therapist for over a decade. She began her career in acute care at Upstate Medical University, eventually transitioned into pediatrics, and then became a full time faculty member in an Occupational Therapy...

11.27.2020

Occupational Therapy & the Spirit of Positivity (Episode 105)

Liz DeFinnis is an occupational therapist and a busy mom of three young children. She graduated from Misericordia University in 2009 with a MS in Occupational Therapy. A few years later she continued her education and graduated from Capella University...

11.20.2020

How Behavioral Change Can Improve Clinical Outcomes (Episode 104)

Occupational therapist Rafael E. Salazar II, MHS, OTR/L, is the guest on this episode which centers on improving clinical outcomes through human connection. As principal owner of Rehab U Practice Solutions, a leader in patient retention strategy, he has experience...

11.13.2020

A Desired Quality of Life: Living as an Occupational Therapist with a Mental Health Condition (Episode 103)

Steve Nawotniak is an occupational therapy practitioner living in Buffalo, NY, who specializes in mental health and treatment of mental health conditions. On this episode, Steve shares his insight and perspective about ways to improve quality of life for individuals...

10.30.2020

Medical Illustration (Episode 102)

Tiffany Davanzo is a freelance medical illustrator specializing in art for medical publications, education and the medical legal field. She is 2003 graduate of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Art as Applied to Medicine Program. Tiffany is a...

10.26.2020

Enhancing Patient Engagement (Episode 101)

Susannah Bailin is a former patient who was very frustrated by the handouts and generic videos that she was supposed to use to do her home exercises so she started a business called AC Health. Her goal was to make...

10.16.2020

It's the 100th Episode!

It's the 100th episode of the On The Air podcast and things are being done a bit differently for milestone installment. On this episode, the podcast host, Stephanie Lancaster, is interviewed by Orli Weisser-Pike, and Stephanie shares about her professional...

10.09.2020

Virtual Reality as a Therapeutic Modality in Occupational Therapy (Episode 99)

Dr. Frederick B. Covington is an occupational therapist , award winning inventor, professor, author, and technology design specialist. Following his graduation from Howard University, he began his career as an occupational therapist. His areas of expertise includes pediatrics, school based...

09.07.2020

What We Don't Know About Burnout Can Hurt Us (Episode 98)

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....

07.24.2020

The Brainy OT (Episode 97)

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...

07.22.2020

The Therapist Becomes the Patient: A PT's Experience with COVID-19 (Episode 96)

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...

07.10.2020

Long-term Functional Effects of Medulloblastoma Treatment (Episode 95)

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...

06.26.2020

Why Is There a Person in My Computer? The Telehealth Boom (Episode 94)

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,...

06.19.2020

Leveraging One's Strengths to Work in a Non-clinical Capacity (Episode 93)

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...

06.17.2020

The Ins and Outs of Clinical Burnout (Episode 92)

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...

06.05.2020

The Lactation OT (Episode 91)

Marissa Yahil, MSOT, OTR/L, CBS, is an occupational therapist who specializes in lactation and infant feeding. She owns and operates a private practice in Texas called Lactation & Development Resources which serves mothers perinatally and infants ages 0-6 months. Prenatally,...

05.22.2020

Pediatric Massage (Episode 90)

Laura Barnhart, OTR/L, CIMI-2, CIIT, has been an occupational therapist for almost 20 years and has a passion for helping the pediatric population and their families. Laura completed her sensory integration training at The Children's Center for Neurodevelopmental Studies in...

04.24.2020

The Role of Occupational Therapy in Supporting Sleep (Episode 89)

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...

04.17.2020

Professionalism & Passion in Occupational Therapy (Episode 88)

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...

04.10.2020

Burnout & Compassion Fatigue (Episode 87)

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...

04.07.2020

Partnerships in the Field of Occupational Therapy (Episode 86)

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...

03.27.2020

Home Modification (Episode 85)

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...

03.20.2020

Stories about the Impact of Occupational Therapy (Episode 84)

This episode features an occupational therapist by the name of Margret Kingrey who retired from practice in 2016 after working in the field for several decades. Margret graduated with a degree in occupational therapy from the University of Puget Sound...

03.06.2020

My OT Journey (Episode 83)

Robin Akselrud, OTD, OTR/L, is an occupational therapist with fifteen years of experience in a variety of clinical practice areas. As a certified early intervention provider, she has worked in several treatment settings, including schools, home care for medically...

03.02.2020

Vibrant Palette: Bringing Art into Occupational Therapy (Episode 82)

Diane Knoll, OTR/L, is an occupational therapist who works as the founder and director of Vibrant Palette Arts Center, a non-profit visual arts day program for adults with disabilities in the city of Seattle. With 15 years of experience working...

What's On The air about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

On The air episodes: