Student Blog
Classes

Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic ⟩
October 24, 2011, by Chelsea

Classes Living in LA What are OS/OT?

In OT 550 “Foundations of Occupational Science” we had an assignment last week that was to attend a sporting event instead of going to class . . . pretty cool, right? The purpose of the assignment was to examine the components that comprise play for adults, such as intrinsic motivation, self-actualization, creativity, lack of seriousness, etc., and also to see how sporting events are representations of political, social, and religious rifts in society. Well, I decided to go to a sporting event I had never seen before: polo. The Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic takes place at Will Rogers State Park in Pacific Palisades. Ladies in broad rimmed hats scattered the lawn surrounding the field holding glasses of champagne in one hand and a golden Veuve Clicquot sun umbrella in the other. Men in suits and wearing Panama hats lounged in their lawns chairs. Needless to say, it is quite a classy affair. For only $15 you get a day full of entertainment, socializing, and lounging in the sun! In class the following week we discussed our experiences and related them to the themes in the readings. It was so interesting hearing about everyone’s experiences and trying to collaborate with the whole class to reach an agreement about what constitutes play. Some say we work to play, and some say we play to work because without play we would get burnt out. And then there are those that get paid to do something they truly love and never really “work” a day in their lives. Once I become an OT, that will be me!

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Learning How to Make Pizza ⟩
October 7, 2011, by Alix

Classes What are OS/OT?

One of my electives this semester is called “Optimal Living with Multiple Sclerosis.” The class, which is co-sponsored by the National MS Society, allows us (OT students) to pair up with individuals who have Multiple Sclerosis. Together, we work with the participants to maximize their health and happiness by addressing habits, routines, and activities of daily living. Today’s topic was “Nutrition and Cooking,” so we decided to make pizza in order to educate the participants about energy conservation techniques, pacing, and adaptive equipment for the kitchen. When we were planning the activity, I thought that we would buy some pre-made pizza dough, throw some Ragu on it, and call it pizza. But I was surprised to find out that one of the participants, David, is a chef by trade and knew of a great Italian grocer in Burbank. He volunteered to bring all of the dough, sauce, and cheese (I supplied the toppings), and then he taught us how to make pizza. I found out that you only need a pizza stone, which stays in the oven the whole time, and some flour to roll out the dough. Then you sprinkle some corn meal on a metal cookie sheet, spread the dough out on the sheet, and add the sauce/cheese/topings you like. Cook for six or seven minutes, and it’s ready to eat. The class went well, and we got to teach a lot of the participants how to cut ingredients with an adaptive “rocking” knife and an adaptive cutting board. And of course the pizza was delicious. (Mine was the best: pesto, basil, onions, olives, and anchovies.)

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Inter-Disciplinary Student Collaboration ⟩
September 20, 2011, by Kimberly

Classes What are OS/OT?

One of my electives this semester is called “Occupational Therapy in Primary Healthcare Environments.” In this class we are looking at the various roles occupational therapists can take in primary healthcare settings like family clinics, emergency rooms, pediatric clinics, assisted living facilities, etc. It is a newer field for OT and focuses mainly on prevention and wellness. Also in this class, we are part of a pilot study titled Inter-Professional Geriatric Curriculum (IPGC) where we get to work with students studying to be doctors, physician’s assistants, pharmacists, and physical therapists. With this team, we will go visit a resident at a local assisted living facility and talk with him/her from the lens of our different disciplines and provide recommendations based on our different areas of expertise.

In preparation to my group’s first visit with our resident, we decided to meet for dinner to discuss strategy and get to know each other. We got to go around and describe what really we do in our professions, discuss our expectations for this class, and then discuss an approach to going in and talking with our resident. It was so inspiring to see the collaboration that happened naturally for all of us. We are all pretty easy-going, but no one was fighting over turf, stepping on others’ toes or trying to push their agenda. Hopefully when I graduate and enter the field a year from now, these kinds of relationships and partnerships will be present wherever I end up working. It’s fun to be able to understand/respect the other fields of expertise while also contributing OT’s unique perspective.

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My First OT Elective ⟩
September 19, 2011, by Chelsea

Classes What are OS/OT?

The second year of the Occupational Therapy program at USC gives students the opportunity to take their first OT elective course — their first opportunity to choose a course they are interested rather than having it be required! After doing my third Level I Fieldwork in hand therapy, I had a heightened interest in the field and in the prospect of getting certified to be a hand therapist. Although there were many awesome courses to choose as my one elective this fall, I had no trouble making the decision to take Hand Rehabilitation with Lisa Deshaies.

So far it has been incredible and is “hands down” my favorite class! We have learned so much practical knowledge about the anatomy of the hand and all kinds of different hand deformities and injuries. Professor Deshaies keeps the class interesting by reading us excerpts that relate to the hand in Sports Illustrated, showing us videos of the progress and personal struggle of a patient she treated, bringing in actual hand and arm cadavers to get a more “hands on” anatomy understanding, and leading great class discussions. Currently, I’m working on a Hand Observation Log for which I have been observing how people use their hands daily for functioning, communicating, and other daily activities. Surprisingly, you can tell a lot about a person by how they are using their hands. Some of the best aspects of the class are that the class is at night so I don’t need to wake up early, and it is credit/no credit making it less stressful than my other courses . . . however, it can be a bit of a “handful”!

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Why I Chose Occupational Therapy ⟩
September 13, 2011, by Chelsea

Classes What are OS/OT?

Occupational Therapy (OT) seems to attract a diverse array of people, but all of which have a few key characteristics in common: they are amicable, creative, investigative, caring, and interested in many different things. I consider myself as falling into this category. I’ve always had many different hobbies ranging from playing tennis to doing black and white photography. Similarly, I have always had many different interests in school — mainly in the domains of science and art.

When I came to USC as an “Undecided” freshman, I started by taking a few biology and chemistry classes and a few art history and photography classes. I was having such difficulty deciding what to declare as my major that at the end of my freshman year I visited USC’s career counseling office where I discovered the happy-medium that was occupational therapy. I learned that occupational therapy required both creative thinking and scientific knowledge; and that you could find the therapeutic value in the activities you love doing and incorporate them into therapy. My first OT class that I took was Intro to Occupational Therapy with Kate Crowley and, from that point on, I knew I wanted to be an occupational therapist. Kate’s brilliant way of engaging her students makes everyone look forward to her class. It was so interesting to evaluate our own daily occupations and determine how they were impacting our health. I started to realize what an enormous role my hobbies had on my daily health and well-being and became more cognizant of how to balance my lifestyle.

Currently, I am in the second year of the Master’s program and I’m taking my first OT elective: Hand Therapy. One of our first assignments is to observe hands and record what fascinates you. People can be so creative with their hands and use them so intricately. I think it is such a good example of how occupational therapy allows you to combine creativity with science because the hand is so complex. Now I just need to think of a way I could incorporate therapeutic aspects of tennis and photography into hand therapy . . . hmmm.

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