Janis Yue OTD, OTR/L (she/her)

This essay traces my personal roots as an Asian-American woman with a father diagnosed with bipolar disorder and the impact of my lived experiences on my professional journey as a pediatric mental health occupational therapist. I highlight three exemplary client stories from my year as a doctoral resident at a community-based mental health agency that have furthered my critical analysis of our current child welfare system. Finally, I reflect upon the importance of collectively developing an abolitionist praxis as occupational therapists and health workers at large who are committed to building equitable systems of care that do not further harm structurally marginalized community members.

Keywords. child welfare system, abolition, transformative justice, BIPOC mental health

Background. Projected demographic trends in the United States suggest increasing racial and ethnic diversity. It is important that the healthcare workforce reflects these trends to reduce healthcare disparities among underserved populations. For example, concordant backgrounds between patients and providers improve communication and increase probability that patients seek and receive healthcare among marginalized populations. Building in curricular opportunities to connect with the underserved community is one way to recruit students from diverse backgrounds into this pipeline that will lead to a diverse workforce in healthcare. The objective of this study was to assess the influence of an interdisciplinary student-run clinic (SRC), which focuses on caring for underserved and vulnerable populations, on students’ decisions to matriculate in four health professional programs (medical, occupational therapy, pharmacy, and physician assistant) at a single institution.

Methods. In this retrospective cross-sectional survey study, we examined factors influencing first-year students’ decisions to attend a private university in a large metropolitan area. The primary outcome was students’ self-reported ratings of the university’s SRC as a factor in their matriculation decisions. Two-tailed Mann-Whitney-U tests was applied to compare the relative importance of SRC on matriculation. Free response data were evaluated by a qualitative content approach.

Results. A total of 419 students completed the survey (73% completion rate) across the 4 programs. We found that underrepresented minorities in medicine (URM) (p < 0.05) and first-generation (p < 0.01) students rated the importance of an SRC on their matriculation decision significantly higher than non-URM and non-first-generation students.

Conclusions. Our findings suggest that the presence of an SRC may positively impact matriculation decisions and diversification of the student body across certain health professional disciplines.

Keywords. Vulnerable Populations, Minority Groups, Interprofessional Education, LGTBQIA

While student-run free clinic (SRFC) participation is well-documented among many health professions, no study has comprehensively characterized occupational therapy student participation. The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand both the current presence as well as educational impact of occupational therapy student participation in university-based SRFCs in the United States (U.S). Data collection occurred through a national survey and semi-structured interviews. Surveys were sent to representatives (e.g. program directors, faculty advisors, and student leaders) at all 190 accredited occupational therapy schools. Of these, 118 responded, for an overall response rate of 62.1%. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposeful sample of physician’s assistant, medical, pharmacy, and occupational therapy students (N=9). Results showed that 12.7% of schools contributed volunteers to at least one SRFC (N=15). Themes included that occupational therapy students provided a unique perspective to the interprofessional team, educated other students about occupational therapy’s scope, and demonstrated strong patient interviewing skills. They also learned from opportunities to explore future career possibilities, engage in interdisciplinary teamwork, and practice skills in a safe space. Occupational therapy programs have a relatively low rate of participation (12.7%) in SRFCs compared to other health professions nationally. However, occupational therapy and other health professional students report that occupational therapy student participation creates important educational opportunities. These opportunities may strengthen occupational therapy’s role in interprofessional team-based care, especially within the emerging practice area of primary care.