Scranton On The SpOT, Spring 2024 Edition 2

SCRANTONON THESPOT

NewsletteroftheOccupationalTherapyDepartmentatTheUniversityofScranton

Title

Students and Professors Attend AOTA Inspire 2024

At the 2024 AOTA INSPIRE Conference, our department was given the opportunity to represent 5 different research projects with a large number of alumni returning to present their hard work.

Dr. Patricia Wisniewski’s research evaluated the impact that community-based learning had on first-year occupational therapy students and was presented by students Liz Behling, Erin Fowler, Abby Gillen, and Kelly McGovern.

Dr. Karen Brady presented her research regarding the student and faculty perceptions of having an AOTA membership alongside her student researchers. She was joined by Trinity Manning, Caroline McCaffery, Sydney Ostroff, and Delia Pellettiere.

The faculty chaperone of this year’s trip, Dr. Deborah Budash, presented her research on spirituality and occupation in young adults. She was joined by Megan Stanislowksi, Kaitlyn Hartsky, Alex Garza, and Cassidy Treese, the student researchers for this topic.

Dr. Marlene Morgan presented on an OTs role with adolescents with a sports-related concussion, and the impact of smart home technology on aging in place, and was joined by student researcher, Mya Pennisi. She also presented her research on lifestyle redesign for survivors of human trafficking and OT & nature-based interventions.

Inaugural Go Baby Go Event

University of Scranton OT students have collaborated all semester with students from the engineering department to adapt ride on toy cars for children in the local area with disabilities. This organization, known as Go Baby Go, was started at the University this semester by professor Stephanie DeNaples, who received a grant to assist with the funding. Students were provided the opportunity to meet with the families who would be receiving these cars earlier in the semester, and used their clinical reasoning skills to determine what adaptations needed to be made to these devices. Each car is personalized for the specific child, enabling them to engage in the occupation of play.

These cars were distributed to children and their families on May 4th in the Byron center. This was a day full of excitement and growth and we are so proud of the progress made this semester. If you are interested in joining Go Baby Go in the future, please contact stephanie.denaples@scranton.edu

SOTASpotlight

SOCK Hop Dance

Our SOTA members partnered with the ARC of Northeastern Pennsylvania for another incredible dance in the Long Center. It was held on March 21st, World Down Syndrome Day. The theme was Sock Hop where participants could wear crazy socks or 50's attire! Over 40 SOTA members came to set up and clean up, make root beer floats, and dance the night away. MVJS Cheerleaders performed incredible cheer routines to start the night and the Long Center Lobby was turned into a 50's dance floor with an amazing DJ and instruments for all to use This event was led by SOTA community service co-chairs Nicole Kenny and Rebekah Thompson with the help of the SOTA members to make it a great success ARC and SOTA are looking forward to another great dance in the fall!

CongratulationstotheNewlyElected Membersofour2024-2025SOTA Board!

President: Lila Naccari

VIce President: Emily Murphy

Secretary: Kaitlyn Gelman

Treasurer: Emily Welborn

Community Service Co-Chairs: Rebekah Thompson and Gabriella Graham

ASD Representative: Annie Berger

Class of 2025 Representatives: Tara Renda and Julia Dioro

Class of 2026 Representatives: Emily Kane and Julia Downing

Class of 2027 Representatives: Erin Adomilli and Kelsey Myler

OTStudentsInductedInto AlphaSigmaNuHonorSociety

On April 28th, 6 OT students were inducted into the University of Scranton’s Chapter of the National Jesuit Honor Society, Alpha Sigma Nu. Alpha Sigma Nu is the oldest Honor Society in the University and is the only Honor Society open to students and faculty in all disciplines and all colleges of the University; its admission standards are the most rigorous. The Greek letters of Alpha, Sigma, and Nu stand for adelphotes skolastikon nikephoron – brotherhood of honor students. Current juniors and seniors who have distinguished themselves in scholarship, loyalty, and service are eligible for membership in this society. Students must be in the top 15% of their respective academic class to be eligible for membership; then, individuals must be nominated by chapter members, recommended by the moderator, and ultimately appointed by the president of the University. No more than 5% of each graduating class is able to be accepted for membership A big congratulations to all of the current and new members! We are so proud of you!!!

Seniors: Hailey Hopkins Kelly McGovern, Jessica Tsu

Juniors: Annie Berger, Abigail Gillen, Alana Kelly

Other OT members inducted in previous years: Madison Borys and Rosa Azzato

Community-Based Learning

Community-based learning is a highly valued and integral aspect of our curriculum in the OT program. Each semester our OT students complete an array of CBL activities, learning and helping within our local community here in Scranton. The seniors this semester made seasonal cards for individuals in a nursing home, as well as helped to install a home security system for a member of the community. The juniors formulated lesson plans for a group to at New Roots, a local organization. The sophomores completed a neurological-related craft for children at the Pine Brook Arts Festival. Lastly, the first years, had a few CBL activities this semester including creating a craft for the Pine Brook Arts Festival, creating a craft at the Evening of Environmental Science, and conducting an activity at The Recovery Bank. Community-based learning is a vital piece of our education and we are so proud of the good our students are doing!

Castle Program

The Junior OT class had the opportunity to help facilitate the Castle Program in collaboration with The Autism Collaborative Centers for Excellence. The Castle Program is a social-emotional learning play-based group focused on problem-solving and executive functioning skills. This group includes individuals aged 7 and up with autism spectrum disorder. Students completed an introductory course on social and emotional learning to prepare for this group. During the meetings, students played games and did crafts with the children. Overall, this experience was beneficial for the junior class to have hands-on experience and practice their new skills in a fun way!

OTD Students

Kathleen Appau, Katie Holdsworth, Meredith

Lee, Aimee Mockler, and Jenni Wilkinson presented their research data about preferred activities for adults with low vision to the Lackawanna Blind Association. They conducted interviews with individuals with low vision to determine what activities they might be interested in participating in. The findings of their research will be used to help create more group activities for individuals at the Lackawanna Blind Association to enhance their overall health and well-being.

Graduate Students Visit Magee Rehabilitation Hospital

Eleven graduate OT students traveled to Philadelphia on Sat , May 4, 2024, with Dr Budash for a visit to the Traumatic Brain Injury/Stroke Unit at Magee Rehabilitation Hospital Magee is a world class facility and we learn so much with each visit, but what makes the Magee seminars so special is that they are led by alumni of our program. Seen here with our students are OT alumni (back row, center to right) Brian Comly (2009), Amy Fleming (2010), and Natalie Pondok (2012). They were on campus on Friday, May 3, 2024 to prepare students for our on-site visit Saturday. They videoed assessments and interventions with clients for students to view and write notes on, shared assessments and case studies, and arranged for our group to observe treatment sessions with three current patients It was an exceptional day of learning! We are grateful to our alumni who remain so invested in our program and the future of our wonderful profession.

Lily Nowak Shines On The Court

Congratulations to Lily Nowak (graduate student) on a record breaking tennis season. Lily broke the program‘s all time singles win record by recording a grand total of 51 wins throughout her career. Lily also broke the all time doubles win record for both the program and the entire Landmark Conference with 55 wins. Lastly, Lily was named the Landmark Conference Athlete of the Week 3 times this year, for a grand total of 4 times throughout her career. Congratulation Lily, we are so proud of you!!!

STUDY BREAK!

Spring Fling

Sophomores in Dr. Nastasi’s Scientific

Writing course took a quick break from the classroom on April 18th to visit the Dunkin Cruiser on campus! This event was a part of Jesuit Identity Week hosted by the Division of Mission and Ministry at the University.

AHEC Scholars

As of April, Rowan Cann has been inducted into the AHEC Scholars Program. This program focuses on providing education to health professions students on the experiences in rural and underserved urban settings. This program will help further her understanding of vulnerable populations and make her a wellrounded occupational therapist in the future. Congratulations!

On April 6th, OT graduate students, friends, and faculty attended the annual VetDog Gala. Throughout the semester volunteer students joined together to create the VetDog committee with co-chairs Grace Clark and Kayla Creagh. From the beginning of the semester until graduation this committee works to raise money for America's VetDogs. America's VetDogs is an organization in which veterans are paired with a puppy to assist with daily tasks as well as provide companionship. On Saturday, April 6th, Josh Chadwick and his dog Kelley attended our gala to share his experience with this organization; Josh shared how this organization has changed his life for the better. The annual spring fling assisted in getting the total funds raised this semester to $7,000 but the VetDog Committee is not stopping there. The goal they set in place at the beginning of the semester was to raise enough for 2 dogs, so the fundraising continues. Follow their Instagram uofsvetdogs to stay up to date with current fundraisers!

Outside of the Classroom

This summer the Orientation team will have plenty of Occupational Therapy Representation. Nine OT students are part of the team that will welcome incoming first years this summer.

Juniors Eddie Drong, Emma B M Hammond and Andrea Herrera their third and final Orientati

Joceyln Kugler and Angelina returning along with the first y Adomilli and Christina Gabriel the team leaders is Junior

The University’s Liva Arts Company’s production of Children of Eden hit the theaters from April 18th-20th! The cast included many OT students, who are not only dedicated to their profession, but the arts as well. Sophomore and OT major Lily Guidetti says that about “1/3 of the club (Liva)” is comprised of OT students. Lily plays Mama Noah in Children of Eden, and among the many other OT cast members, gave us an incredible performance last weekend!

This past basketball season Meghan Lammana began her college career strong. The freshman guard had many stand out performances and made a name for herself in her breakout rookie season. Totaling 215 points, 48 rebounds, and 21 steals, it's no surprise she was named Landmark Conference women's basketball rookie of the year. It will be exciting to watch Meghan grow and continue to represent Scranton and the OT department with pride.

Help Support AFYA

The Global Health Club is currently holding a medical supplies donation drive until the end of the semester! Please consider donating unused or slightly used medical supplies, equipment, protective gear, and other items to this drive to support the Afya Foundation. Please refer to the flyer for examples of donations and contact information for larger pieces of equipment. All medical supplies will be donated to the Afya Foundation where they create a customizable shipment of specific needs to healthcare providers globally. Thank you for considering and making this donation drive a success!

DEPARTMENT CELEBRATES OT MONTH

The Scranton OT Department celebrated National Occupational Therapy Month in style!!! Each week there were spirit events and prizes based on different areas of occupation. Week one followed the theme of “work”; Participants were to dress for “being on the job”. There was also an opportunity to win a gift card by guessing how many “work” supplies were in a jar. Week two’s theme was leisure' around campus, there were painted rocks for students to “hike” around and find to try to win a prize while dressing for their favorite leisure activity. Week three’s theme was Rest and Sleep, with a pajama day and a test on how well students know their instructors. The month concluded with week 4 as the education theme. To celebrate, students wore University of Scranton merch and Professor Nealon brought in cupcakes for all students.

Fieldwork Advice

Preparing for Level II Fieldwork

By: Jessica M. Brennan OTD, MS, OTR/L & Courtney Lancia OTD, OTR/L

Hooray! You’ve made it so far and you are close to the home stretch! As you know, your Level II fieldwork will incorporate much of what you’ve learned during your coursework into a real-life, hands-on clinical setting. Fieldwork is an incredible, yet challenging, learning experience that is integral to your development as an occupational therapist. As you progress through each week of fieldwork, collect the best, most effective interventions that you learn or observe and add them to your OT “bag of tricks.” When you observe or try an intervention or approach that is lessthan-ideal or doesn’t best serve your clients, you will know not to add them to your OT toolkit. Often, the process of trial and error is our best teacher! Level II fieldwork will fly by even though, at times, it may feel like a very long experience. Whether you are placed in your dream setting or one that isn’t your top preference, the knowledge and experience gained will only benefit you personally and professionally – always keep your eyes, ears, and mind open! Although there is still a lot to do before you start fieldwork, here are some tips to consider as you mentally and physically prepare for your first or second Level II rotation:

1. Each fieldwork site has unique qualities that may or may not be what you expected. Each day, try to familiarize yourself with the daily operations and climate of the facility. Learning how to navigate a variety of settings, professional dynamics, and clients will prepare you to be an adaptable, effective, and valuable member of any interdisciplinary team.

2. Be mindful of the quality and tone of your communication. We all communicate differently, but regardless of your personal communication style and preference, always be clear, concise, and respectful.

3. Be flexible! Humans and healthcare are unpredictable, so be ready to accommodate unexpected changes. Afterall, adaptability is a fundamental characteristic of an OT.

4. Be proactive. One of the best ways to minimize your stress is to ask questions, plan ahead, anticipate potential hurdles, and have a plan to address unexpected outcomes. Always reflect on each experience and any feedback that you receive as a way to grow your skills.

5. University of Scranton OT students are consistently applauded for their level of professionalism and you are no different! Represent yourself, our OT program, and “The U” as you always have – with empathy, maturity, and grace. Remember: Take fieldwork one day at a time and absorb all you can…very soon, you will look back and think, “Wow, that was fast!” Follow

Interested in Studying Abroad?

Occupational Therapy Students are eligible to study abroad for an intersession or summer program. If you are interested in participating in this unique experince, please contact the of Global Education via email (kara.bishop@scranton.edu and studyabroad@scranton.edu), or stop by the office located on the first floor of O‘Hara Hall.

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Congratulations to all of our 2024 Graduates. We are so proud of you!

Newsletter Committee:

Abigail Gillen- Junior

Kelly McGovern, Associate Editor- Senior Dr. Deborah Budash, Faculty Mentor, Editor Check

Emily Kane - Sophomore

Emily Murphy - Sophomore

Emily Umstadt - Senior

Emma Winter- Junior

Erin Adomilli - First Year

Erin Fowler- Senior

Julia Diorio- Junior

Natalie Ward- Senior

Rebekah Thompson- Sophomore

Sofia Bredice- Junior