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Yna’s Elective Experiences ⟩
December 16, 2020, by Yna

Classes

One thing that I was most excited about studying at USC Chan is getting to explore the variety of elective courses that they offer. This is certainly a great opportunity to specialize in whatever field of OT you are most interested to pursue. It certainly was not an easy decision for me; and if you find yourself in that same situation, that’s totally okay! I hope this blog will help you as I talk about some highlights of my elective experiences for the fall semester, and why I chose them.

OT 573: Hand Rehabilitation

While I was working as an OT in an adult rehabilitation setting in the Philippines, I had a lot of clients with hand-related injuries. It was during this time when I gained a better appreciation of the complexity of the hands and their importance in daily living — which led me to choose to take this course. Through this elective, I gained in-depth knowledge of the anatomy of the hands and upper extremity primarily through the elaborate reading materials alongside supplementary learning activities such as informative videos. Other topics that were covered in this class included wound healing, scar and edema management, digital splinting, and casting, which was done in-person as can be seen in the photos below!

I definitely learned a lot from this course but one major takeaway that I will never forget is Lisa Deshaies’ (our professor) motto which she likes to abbreviate as FOFO, which stands for “Fight On For Occupations.”

OT 562: Advanced Hand Rehabilitation and Certification (Physical Agent Modalities)

A co-requisite of this course is the OT573 Hand Rehabilitation elective I just discussed above. Now that I have the knowledge that I need about hands and the upper extremity, I decided to further my knowledge on the application of Physical Agent Modalities (PAMs) as a preparatory activity for occupation. Each week, we examined a different modality (i.e., heat, ultrasound, TENS, etc.), discussing each of the modality’s purpose, methods, precautions, contraindications, and application in practice. I gained a lot of insights from my classmates during small group discussions. After taking this class, I feel more adept in writing SOAP notes and engaging in evidence-based practice. Another reason why I chose this elective is because the hours that I earned in class are applicable towards the California Board of OT educational requirements for advanced practice. Our professors, Janice Rocker and André Woo prepared us well for this application by training us all on how to properly fill out the advanced practice application form to make sure that we are ready when the time comes.

OT cinco seis seis (OT 566): Healthcare Communication with Spanish-Speaking Clients

Besides already having a little bit of background in speaking Spanish, I took this course with the goal of being able to communicate effectively with Spanish speaking clients I may have in the future. Although I may not be able to speak it really fluently yet, I believe the mere fact that you’re making an effort makes a difference in creating a safe space for them, consequently helping in the establishment of client-therapist rapport. The focus of the course is learning Spanish words and phrases within a therapeutic context, so I learned how to speak basic sentences that we usually say during therapy sessions such as when introducing yourself: “Mi nombre es Yna y yo soy su terapeuta ocupacional.” Our professor, Dr. Delgado, provided us with various avenues to practice our skills through group work, practicum, assignments — including one wherein we have to use an app that tracks our progress weekly.

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Overcoming Rejection and Feelings of Inadequecy ⟩
December 9, 2020, by Savi

Classes Getting Involved Life Hacks

As my last semester of classes has come to an end, I had anticipated feeling relieved. I now sit here, having passed all of the courses I need to graduate from this Master’s program, feeling immensely overwhelmed and discouraged. Up until this moment, everything had been mapped out for me. Each class that I would take and when I would take them were pre-determined. I knew that I just had to work hard and do my best in order to be successful academically.

I am currently studying for the COMPS (comprehensive exam) that I will be taking on December 15th with the rest of my graduating class and I am worrying about my future. This future is not pre-determined and it is scary, especially amidst a global pandemic. It is up to me to pave the way.

During this hectic time, I have also decided to pursue my OTD. After going through the interview process for the USC Chan Division residencies and being informed that I did not receive one, I felt extremely discouraged. I took this rejection as an indication that I was not good enough to get the opportunities I had been aiming for. I became anxious over the fact that I would have to find my own residency, especially because I was worried that my lack of experience in my field of choice would prevent me not only from getting a residency but also a fieldwork II experience.

This stress and feeling of inadequacy was something that was difficult to overcome. After sitting back and reflecting, I came to realize that I was letting one rejection skew my view of my self-worth and capabilities . . . just one rejection held that much power over me!

It wasn’t until I realized that if I didn’t believe in myself then who would!? I decided that if I didn’t try my best to go after the positions and experiences I feel like I deserve and want then I would regret it tremendously. I couldn’t let one rejection deplete my confidence and I knew that even if there were more rejections to come I would learn from them and keep moving forward.

I spent the coming weeks being polite and persistent. I began communicating with people who could help me develop the residency position of my dreams. Putting all the pieces together was tricky, and it took a lot of persistence to progress things further. Advocating for myself and my worth was key in progressing things forward, as well as acknowledging the work and effort the people communicating with me were putting in. 

Your future is what you make of it. Be persistent, confident, understanding, and kind. Know that the person you are talking to will never know the mark you can make if you don’t advocate for yourself and your worth. Don’t let rejection take a toll on you. Sometimes putting in the extra work to make things happen really pays off! Advocate for yourself and believe in yourself because no one can do it better than you.

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All About That Quarantine Life (Experiences + Study tips) ⟩
November 27, 2020, by Yna

Classes Life Hacks

Studying in quarantine is something that none of us has ever done before, so for those of you who are feeling lost, well, you are not alone! As I have mentioned in my previous blog, this has brought me feelings of anxiety too as I was about to take my final exams (which all went pretty well by the way, yay!). As I have spent a whole semester of figuring out how to navigate this new setup (all while trying my best to look like I have it all together . . . lol), I have picked up a few hacks that some of you may find beneficial.

Develop healthy habits and routines

One of the benefits that many of us have found from doing remote learning is getting to skip the extra steps of having to prepare for and travel to school. With classes being held online, you really only have to worry about being presentable from the chest up (because they’re never going to find out if you’re still in your jammies anyway, right?) and traveling from your bed to your study desk right beside it. I am not even going to lie, I enjoyed being able to just roll out of bed and go straight to class whenever I don’t feel like getting up early. While this might have given me extra hours of precious sleep, in the long run, I realized it became an unhealthy habit I had adopted. I started from waking up at least an hour before class, to 30 minutes prior, to 5 minutes before, and there was even a time that I was late because I overslept (a huge shout out to my dear classmates who noticed I was missing and immediately gave me a wakeup call)! I mean, yeah, everyone has those down days when you’re just feeling extra tired and in need of more sleep; but I realized I had overused this benefit to the point that I had been skipping breakfast altogether for consecutive days. Over time, I found my everyday routine drastically changing — eating habits were disrupted and irregular sleeping patterns have developed — ultimately affecting my study habits because the lack of routine often left me feeling all over the place and unable to focus. And so, I really would suggest waking up a little bit earlier before class to give you some time to eat a good breakfast, savor your cup of coffee, take a shower, maybe do some reading on the materials, and really, to just get your mind oriented and ready for class. And honestly, who doesn’t love just getting a moment to yourself at the start of the day? Besides, how you begin your day kind of sets the stage of how the rest of your day is going to look like, so try your best not to start it in such a rush.

Set up your space neatly

Not only do you need to set up your mind, you also need to set up your space all ready for work. A cluttered environment = a cluttered mind! I ended up getting a new desk and chair that’s ergonomically correct for my workstation to facilitate proper posture, but this really isn’t a necessity. There are many ways to adapt and work with what you currently have (using pillows for your back, step stool for feet support, etc.) — we as OTs know all about this! I’ve had to experiment a couple times playing with different positioning of my desk that works best for me in relation to lighting, room temperature, and appearance on Zoom background (making sure the space behind me has low traffic to avoid bloopers during class, LOL).

Take breaks

I know, you’re probably already tired of hearing this; but truth be told, this new setup has got us sitting in front of our computers for most of the day — without us even realizing it! I admit, I, too, am a victim of this. The advent of technology has advanced the speed of information processing by a ton, that it’s getting harder and harder for us, humans, to keep up. Nevertheless, we still try our best to answer emails as soon as they get to our inboxes, and accomplish any other task that needs to be done “just to get it out of the way,” am I right? The to-do list goes on and the next thing you know, you had already been working for hours straight. And when you finally decide to take a minute to pause, that’s when you’re going to feel them all at once — strained eyes, pain from the neck all the way to your lower back, hungry stomach, tired arms and fingers from hours of typing with poor posture. This is why I really appreciate our professors who sees to it that they allot some time during the class to give us multiple breaks as our chance to stretch, hydrate, go to the restroom, or grab something to eat (to be honest, sometimes I even take a nap — just make sure you wake up in time!). You can also set up your own physical activity reminders at different points throughout the day using your smartphone or watch.

Get physical!

In relation to my previous tip, I found it helpful to incorporate exercise in my weekly routine as my form of physical activity to battle this increasingly sedentary lifestyle. Of course, it’s not like I just woke up one day deciding to start working out and then consistently did it. New routines take time to develop, so don’t be too hard on yourself! You really don’t want this to be another source of pressure for you aside from other responsibilities that you already have. What definitely helped me get motivated and stick to the schedule was doing it with my friends, who also happened to be in the same program as mine — leaving us with pretty much similar class schedules and free time to exercise.

Study in groups

Since we’ve already set up workout sessions, might as well extend it to study sessions with friends too! I know, you’re practically already in Zoom most of the day for classes so you might ask: why choose to add more hours on the screen? Well, for me, seeing other people (albeit virtually) so focused on studying gives me the boost to do my own studying too. Basically, one of us sets up a meeting and keeps it open for several hours where people are free to come and go. This gives everyone a little bit of flexibility since we all have other responsibilities in our own busy lives. As a bonus, if we do a great job focusing for a couple hours, we reward ourselves with a few minutes to chill and casually talk with each other (someone’s gotta be responsible in making sure we go back to studying, though!)

In addition to these, you can also check out Savi’s blog and find some tips on staying organized! I hope you find these useful for your own studying, especially those who will be taking their comprehensive exams next month. You got this! Best of luck to you all, and Fight On!

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Clowning Around ⟩
November 18, 2020, by Bethany

Classes

Recently, our OT 540 Leadership Capstone class had a visit from an AOTA member who was able to discuss with our class the importance of advocacy and quality in OT. The speaker was invited to stay for our next special presentation. And the “presentation” was a visit from clowns. Yes. Three clowns, complete with red noses, hats, and names like Yebo, showed up in our Zoom meeting. At first, the whole class of 138 people was extremely confused. Our serious discussion about the quality of OT services had suddenly turned into Captain Noodles asking our professor if she had picked her nose today. One of our classmates got so freaked out he hid under his desk and was deemed by the clowns to be a professional escape artist.

As various text messaging groups pinged back and forth trying to find the source of the hilarity, one of my friends sent a link to the Institute for Theatre & Social Change (ITSC) and their medical clowning program, and we recognized one of the clowns who visited us on their website. The medical clowns use laughter and humor to impact medical and psychological benefits. The program itself is a unique partnership between the USC School of Dramatic Arts and other medical centers associated with USC, such as LAC+USC Medical Center and Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles, where the clowns will do clowning rounds and visit patients at these sites. However, with safety regulations due to the pandemic, the clowns have moved to virtual platforms. You can even sign up for your own 15 minute Zoom clowning session!

It is amazing to see our fellow students from other schools across USC coming together to impact health. Thank you for your visit! As strange as it was to have three clowns show up during our Zoom meeting, it was a nice stress-reliever and a good laugh. Keep up the good clowning work! And, fellow students, as we head into finals season, keep laughing and keep being your awesome selves.

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Will I Have Time to Work During the Master’s Program? ⟩
November 4, 2020, by Savi

Classes Getting Involved

As the Nov. 1 application deadline has just passed, I have been receiving many questions from prospective students about balancing a job and graduate school. Although this experience will vary from person to person, I thought it could be helpful to give you all a bit of insight into my experience balancing work and graduate school!

The Entry-Level Professional Master’s program begins with a jampacked 8-week summer semester in which you complete foundation-based courses like Kinesiology and Neuroscience in an extremely short amount of time. This makes for a high intensity and fast-paced semester with class from Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:00pm and a few hours studying upon your return home each afternoon. I, therefore, chose not to work during the first summer. I had also just completed my undergraduate degree a week before beginning the Master’s program and hadn’t even found a place in LA to live yet! I was grateful to have a few hours on the weekend or on Friday evenings to apartment search, find a job for the fall semester in my new neighborhood, and get to know the fun city I was living in.

During my Fall semester in the Mental Health Immersion, I felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders. I was in class three days a week, completing my Fieldwork I one day a week, and had my Friday’s completely free! This allowed me more time to take on a part-time job as a gym receptionist and sales associate at a gym near my apartment. They allowed me to work extremely flexible hours, as they understood I was not available during most of the week. I worked the evening shift after school one night a week, the Friday afternoon shift, and a weekend shift, which all combined to approximately 20 hours a week of work on top of graduate school. Was this easy? No . . . it was really overwhelming at times and I did not have much time to participate in social or revitalizing occupations (such as sleeping a sufficient amount of hours every night!). I am very thankful that I was able to fit in some studying or homework during my work hours if we were having a slow day, that I loved spending time with my co-workers, and that I was allowed to take a free workout class during each shift. If this wasn’t the case, I do not think I would be able to commit 20+ hours a week to a job while completing my Master’s degree (also I wouldn’t recommend it regardless because it was TOUGH). I continued this workload during the following Spring Semester in the Pediatrics Immersion. It was nice to make some money and work on applicable skillsets for the OT field, such as adjusting your communication style depending on the customer, giving clear and concise directions, or staying organized and calm during chaotic or unforeseen situations.

At the end of my Spring semester, I was exhausted and I needed a change. I knew the Adult Rehabilitation Immersion was coming next and as a student interested in working in an inpatient hospital setting with adults in the future, I wanted to have more time to focus on all the valuable coursework. The Student Ambassador position became available and as a previous college tour guide, I was thrilled by the opportunity to step into a similar role for a program I love dearly. After applying and interviewing, I was lucky enough to be chosen as one of the Student Ambassadors and was extremely thankful for the expectation that we were to work 10 hrs/week. On top of that, working for the Chan Division allows you a lot more flexibility with your hours, as the faculty you are working for understand the workload you are trying to balance. Thank you to Kimberly Kho, our AMAZING supervisor/boss, for being so flexible, understanding, and respectful of our busy and ever-changing graduate school schedules. Kim has always reinforced that academics takes priority and has allowed us to adjust our schedules to provide more time on particular weeks to study for exams, write big papers, etc. Visit Yna’s blog to learn more about what we do as student ambassadors!

From my experiences, you may have noticed a trend. Can you work in grad school . . . yes! It is doable depending on what job it is and how much flexibility it allows you. I am grateful to have had understanding bosses and incredible, fun, and kind co-workers in both of my jobs! Be sure to weigh the pros and cons of the job before you commit to it and make sure that you are prioritizing your physical and mental health! As Kim says . . . you are a student first.

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