Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Exploring Occupational Disruption In Newly Diagnosed Individuals With Cancer With Minor (Dependent) Children, Riley S. Harrold, Susan Macdermott, Becki Cohill

Spring 2020 Virtual OTD Capstone Symposium

Background: According to the American Cancer Society (2019), there were more than 1.7 million new cases of cancer in 2019 alone. Individuals are being diagnosed at a young age with 22.4% of cases occurring in individuals 22-55 years old and whom are childrearing age (Shah et al., 2017). There are an estimated 2.85 million children under the age of 18 who are living with a parent who has cancer (Shah et al., 2017). Newly diagnosed individuals face changes in daily life, the threat of possible death, and fear of dying (Compas et al., 1994). Changes in shared family roles …

Occupational Therapy Student Pro Bono Clinic: Creating A Sustainable Model, Shane Tong, Kayla Collins, Mary P. Shotwell

Spring 2020 Virtual OTD Capstone Symposium

The purpose of this project was to create a model for a sustainable student pro bono clinic with a clear mission and vision that aligned with that of the occupational therapy (OT) profession. This project consisted of interviewing founding members of similar programs, conducting an indirect needs assessment, and performing a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis (Blayney, 2008) of current pro bono clinic operations at the University of St. Augustine College for Health Sciences (USAHS). These results, combined with input from key stakeholders, were used to develop a strategic plan to support the development of future pro bono …

Occupational Therapy’S Role In Spirituality: Partnering With A Special Needs Ministry, Kelsey Stockton, Kayla Collins, Mary P. Shotwell

Spring 2020 Virtual OTD Capstone Symposium

Children with special needs frequently face obstacles and barriers to inclusive participation in various activities among their peers; most commonly due to mental, physical, and/or social limitations and deficits (Mathur & Koradia, 2018). One activity in particular impacted by such barriers is participation in spiritual activities within a church (Jacober, 2007; Lee, 2010).

While several highly successful special needs ministries have been established globally, many churches currently either lack appropriate evidence-based volunteer and staff training, adequate resources and accommodations to meet each child’s needs and functional capabilities or are unable to provide any accommodation services. (Avis, 2019; Jacober, 2007; Lee, …

A Non-Pharmaceutical Approach To Chronic Pain: An Ot’S Perspective, Alison L. Brown, Kayla Collins, Mary P. Shotwell

Spring 2020 Virtual OTD Capstone Symposium

The following project was created for advocacy and education of occupational therapy's role in chronic pain management. This project focuses on occupational therapist's ability to utilize non-pharmaceutical interventions to manage chronic pain symptoms. The capstone outlines fitness-based exercises, aquatic therapy, ergonomics, adaptive equipment, and adaptive strategies by supporting their efficacy in recent literature. Occupational therapists possess invaluable skills that can impact the chronic pain community for the better. They can aid in the reduction of pain while increasing overall quality of life and independence. Occupational therapists are a much needed resource in chronic pain management.

Developing Educational Resources To Support The Use Of The Hippotherapy Evaluation And Assessment Tool, Emily Peoples, Kayla Collins, Mary P. Shotwell

Spring 2020 Virtual OTD Capstone Symposium

The Hippotherapy Evaluation and Assessment Tool (HEAT) was created in 2011 with the goal of creating an assessment specific to this therapeutic intervention and effectively tracking client progress. Based on the current literature of client progress during hippotherapy intervention, four domains of scoring were created: Static Posture, Dynamic Motor Behavior, Sensory Processing, and Psychosocial/Behavioral. Over the years, many thesis studies have been conducted to confirm the reliability and validity of the HEAT. However, further dissemination was required as many therapists had not yet heard of the tool. A doctoral capstone project was completed in 2019-2020 to create a training program …

Leadership Roles In The Field Of Occupational Therapy, Christina Pitts, Kayla Collins, Mary P. Shotwell

Spring 2020 Virtual OTD Capstone Symposium

The purpose of this capstone project was to learn about leadership through expertise and experience. The first portion of the project consisted of reviewing the literature and interviewing four occupational therapists that currently had a leadership role within the healthcare industry to gain insight into leadership qualities. The second potion included me being at a facility (Advent Therapy in Richmond Hill, G.A.) for 14 weeks where I observed and learned about current programs, and with the guidance of the therapists and management of the facility, developed and implemented a program that was deemed to be beneficial to the client population.

Mental Health In The School System: Providing Tools And Resources For Teachers, Hannah Skinner, Kayla Collins, Mary P. Shotwell

Spring 2020 Virtual OTD Capstone Symposium

Mental health is an important part of our everyday life. For many school aged students, mental health issues are on the rise and our roles as occupational therapists are becoming more vital. Educators also have a vital role in the mental health of their students, however their is a gap between their knowledge of mental health practices and their comfort and confidence with implementing such practices.

This project aimed to bridge this gap for 5 educators in the Lake Stevens School District in Washington state. The project was comprised of a Mindfulness Toolkit that walked teachers through implementing a total …

Exploring The Occupation-Based Needs Of Older Adults With Alzheimer’S Disease At A Reminiscence Therapy Adult Day Center, Kendra C. Gillio, Susan Macdermott, Becki Cohill

Spring 2020 Virtual OTD Capstone Symposium

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia, affecting approximately 60% to 70% of the older adult population aged 65 and older (Santos da Silva, de Oliveira Alves, Barros Leite Slagueiro & Bezerra Barbosa, 2018). Reminiscence therapy prompts an individual’s memory by stimulating their sense – sight, smell, hearing, taste, and touch, and provides an opportunity for them to revisit and relive their past through their surrounding environment (Swann, 2013). For individuals with Alzheimer’s disease, occupational therapy focuses on adapting the environment in order to promote their ability to engage in meaningful occupations, increase quality of life, and social …

Exploring The Concurrent Validity Of The Indoor Mobility Pre-Driving Screen (Imps): A Comparison Of The Imps And Ef-Car Motion Driving Simulator, Nicholas T. Bolen, Kayla Collins, Mary P. Shotwell, Kaitlyn Cremer

Spring 2020 Virtual OTD Capstone Symposium

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the concurrent validity of the Indoor Mobility Pre-driving Screen (IMPS) in relation to assessments on the EF-Car Motion Driving Simulator. Data was gathered from a convenience sample of 36 participants ages 18 and older who possessed an active driver’s license. To answer the primary research question, is there a correlation between scores on the IMPS and the EF-Car Motion Driving Simulator, statistical analyses were performed in the form of Pearson r correlations. Results of these statistical tests showed scores on the IMPS correlate with some scores on the driving simulator. While some …

Enhancing Engagement In Older Adults With Alzheimer's Disease At A Reminiscencce Therapy Adult Day Center, Kendra C. Gillio

Student Capstone Papers

Alzheimer’s disease is a degenerative form of dementia, which can impair an individual’s executive functioning, orientation, and memory; ultimately leading to mood and behavior changes (Alzate, 2018). Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia, affecting approximately 60% to 70% of the older adult population aged 65 and older (Santos da Silva, de Oliveira Alves, Barros Leite Slagueiro & Bezerra Barbosa, 2018). Currently, the number of individuals with dementia is estimated at approximately 50 million people worldwide and is expected to climb to 152 million people by the year 2050 (Rathbone, et. al, 2019). Damage to the brain develops …

Occupational Therapy In Veterans Treatment Court, Lauren T. Rodriguez, Kayla Collins, Mary Shotwell, Suny Faradj-Bakht

Spring 2020 Virtual OTD Capstone Symposium

Veterans may face difficulty transitioning back into a civilian lifestyle. Their difficulties may be attributed to PTSD, TBI, sexual trauma, anxiety, depression, unemployment, and more. Due to these obstacles, veterans may commit crimes that place them in the Veterans Treatment Court (VTC). It was noted in October of 2018 that there were possible gaps in service for our veterans. The purpose of this project was to create an occupational therapy-based curriculum that will reduce the recidivism rate in St. Johns County VTC. The OT-based manual is intended to replace negative habits, roles, and routines with positive ones in order to …

Addressing Challenges In Solid Food Transitioning In Infants, Stephanie Gonyea

OTD Capstone Projects

I collaborated with Elements, LLC to address challenges associated with solid food transitioning in infants. I collaborated with local pediatricians to advocate for the role of occupational therapy in supporting caregivers who are struggling to transition their infant to solid food, and marketed Elements as a resource for remediating any challenges families face. In advocating for Element's services, I provided doctors offices with a deliverable marketing their services.

Holistic Home Modification: Developing A Client-Centered Approach To Home Assessments And Quality Of Life Measures, Maggie Little

OTD Capstone Projects

This project is an appraisal of home assessments and quality of life measures in order to find the best fit for pediatric populations and their caregivers.

Demonstrating The Role Of Occupational Therapy In Hospice Care Through Fall Prevention Intervention Program Development, Lauren Schar

OTD Capstone Projects

Demonstrating the Role of Occupational Therapy in Hospice Care through Fall Prevention Intervention Program Development

Mercyone Therapy Rooms, Natalie Bohnsack

INSPIRE Student Research and Engagement Conference

My poster will be about my volunteer work with MercyOne along with information regarding occupational therapy. I will discuss the tasks I completed at MercyOne and what I observed while in the therapy area. In addition, I will include a section about what occupational therapy is. I will do research on food therapy since that is a useful technique occupational therapist utilize and I believe others should be educated on. At the end, I will include my future plans to become a pediatric occupational therapist.

Home Assessment Modifications For Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder And Sensory Processing Disorder, Danielle Stelbasky

OTD Capstone Projects

Based off of the identified needs of individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder, the goals of this project were to investigate and implement modifications in homes due to specific challenges these individuals face. Coinciding with Tucker's House Agency mission and vision, and incorporating the PEO model as a guideline, Tucker's House staff and EC student created projects to enhance occupational performance in individuals with ASD by reducing environmental barriers in their home.

Cultivating Vocational And Independent Living Skills Through Meaningful Occupations, Sawyer Dullaghan

OTD Capstone Projects

A 12-week curriculum was developed for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities to teach life skills, employment skills and foster independent living. These skills are taught in a simulated environment including rooms such as: the bedroom, the living room, and the office.

Home Assessments And Modifications: Researching Safety Features, Grant Opportunities, And Durable Medical Equipment Available For Tucker’S House Agency, Autumn Triggs

OTD Capstone Projects

Doctoral capstone project completed with Tucker's House, a nonprofit organization that completes home assessments and modifications for families with children with disabilities to improve accessibility and independence for the children at home. The project included: completing home assessments and providing client-centered recommendations and researching grant opportunities for Tucker's House as well as the families benefitting from the services, current durable medical equipment options, and safety features that should be included in the home assessments, recommendations, and modifications.

Advocacy For Occupational Therapy Within A Local Jail, Caitlin Clark

OTD Capstone Projects

This capstone project looks at advocating for the occupational therapy profession within the Nashville Davidson County Sheriff's Office and ways to implement quality interventions and group therapy into the jails. It also looked at current re-entry programs at the DCSO and ways to improve current programming.

Power Skills Curriculum Development For Individuals With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities At Friends Life Community, April Coleson

OTD Capstone Projects

Development of life skills curriculum for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities from an occupational therapy perspective

The Right To Explore: On Time Pediatric Power Mobility, Elizabeth Stuckey

OTD Capstone Projects

The following project was completed in partial fulfillment of OTD 6680, for the degree of Doctorate of Occupational Therapy from Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee. This project focused on the importance of pediatric power mobility. After identifying the needs of the agency, goals and outcomes were developed in order to best serve the agency. Various outcomes were achieved through this project including a review of the literature, development of a protocol, participation in a power mobility related research study, creation of various educational materials, and engagement in other educational opportunities.

Support, Advocacy, And Education For Individuals With Mental Illness, Mackenzie Mellinger

OTD Capstone Projects

The National Alliance on Mental Illness of Davidson County provides support, advocacy, and education to those with mental illness and their loved ones. This semester long project includes (but is not limited to) advocacy through the use of instagram/social media, attending legislative events, creating marketing materials appropriate for the population, and looking at mental health through an occupational therapy lens.

Bringing An Occupational Therapy Perspective To Linden Waldorf School, Morgan Craig

OTD Capstone Projects

Through this project, an occupational therapy doctoral student brought an occupational therapy perspective to Linden Waldorf School and provided the school with direct observations, educational presentations, and various educational materials on the topics of fine motor development, sensory processing, and behavior management in order to help empower Waldorf faculty and staff to best meet the needs of their students.

Increasing Participation In Children And Adults With Disabilities At Christ Presbyterian Church, Taylor Boggus

OTD Capstone Projects

In partnering with Christ Presbyterian Church’s Special Needs Ministry for my doctoral capstone project, my aim was to increase participation in the community for children and adults with disabilities. I first created a family needs questionnaire to enable the special needs ministry to identify the needs of the families they serve. I created a resource guide for the ministry to disseminate to their families that includes local resources that serve children and adults with disabilities, including information about the services each resource provides and their contact information. Finally, I created a job skills curriculum to be used in the ministry’s …

On Site Home Assessments For Individuals With Disabilities, Lacy Roling

OTD Capstone Projects

A poster presentation of a completed experiential component with Tucker's House.

Visual Aids For Nashville Dolphins, Sally Widmann

OTD Capstone Projects

A creation of visual aids and an E-manual for beahvioral strategies to assist the coaches and volunteers with work with the Nashville Dolphins organization. The goal of this project was to increase participation of swimmers, who are made up of adults and children alike with a large spectrum of disabilities.

Lymphatouch™ As A Preparatory Method For Chemo-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy And Radiation-Induced Fibrosis: A Case Study, Abigail Harris

OTD Capstone Projects

Quality Improvement: Aims to explore the ability to expand the services offered at the Nashville Breast Center and potentially provide improved health-related quality of life for patients in the survivorship stage of breast cancer. Case Study: To assess the LymphaTouch ™ device for use in treating Chemo-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy and Radiation-Induced Fibrosis.

Supporting Older Adults Through Aging In Place And Capable Programs, Laura Compton

OTD Capstone Projects

This experiential component or doctoral capstone project involved a partnership with Habitat for Humanity of Greater Memphis. Through this agency, projects were completed based on identified needs of the Aging in Place and CAPABLE programs. The Aging in Place (AIP) program provides critical home repairs to low-income adults aged 60 years and older. The CAPABLE program provides the same critical home repairs along with a select number of visits from a registered nurse and an occupational therapist to help the older adults age in place safely.

Evaluating Fitness-To-Drive Among Individuals With Sensory Deficits: A Retrospective Chart Review, Caroline Clark

OTD Capstone Projects

Objective: To explore the diagnostic validity of clinical assessments for sensation in determining fitness-to-drive recommendations in active drivers with sensory deficits.

Methods: Retrospective chart review was conducted using a purposive sampling approach of patients’ medical records from the Vanderbilt Driver Evaluation and Rehabilitation Program in Nashville, Tennessee. Medical records for patients assessed from 12/01/2017 through 12/31/2019, ages 18 or older, with lower extremity sensory deficit(s) identified in the referring and/or treatment diagnoses, medical history, and/or the occupational therapy evaluation problem list were eligible for review. A total of 288 patient medical records were reviewed, but only 40 patient medical …

Nurses For Newborns – Incorporating An Occupational Therapy Perspective In Its Work With Women And Families In The Perinatal Period, Lynsey Beros

OTD Capstone Projects

The author partnered with a nonprofit organization, Nurses for Newborns, to incorporate an occupational therapy perspective in its work with women and families in the perinatal period as part of the OTD capstone project.