MSOT Program Featured in American Occupational Therapy Association Newsletter

Based in the quaint, cozy town of Manchester, NH, our Master of Science in Occupational Therapy (MSOT) program is already making a national impact on how OTs are being trained.

The program was featured in an article published in the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA)'s Special Interest Sections (SIS) Quarterly Practice Connections on Education. The article, which was written by OT department members Angela Butler, MS, OTR/L, Denise Finch, OTD, OTR/L, CHT, Susan Merrill, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA, and Doug Simmons, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA, describes a second-year MSOT course that blends public health with occupational therapy management.

The course, named "Systems of Practice: Public Health and Advanced Management," asks students to step out of the classroom and into the healthcare system of their local community. Following a class conducted by Manchester's Department of Public Health, students develop and implement real-world programs that support local health initiatives. These health initiatives, in the first year, were centered around topics such as homelessness, childhood obesity, and older adult fall prevention, and bolster the efforts of community mental health centers, rehabilitation hospitals, school systems, and senior wellness centers.

At the end of the course, students reported that they now understand how to meet the needs of individuals within the limitations of community sites–an invaluable skill for all healthcare professionals to learn.

Explore our field of occupational therapy for more information on how MCPHS's School of Occupational Therapy can help you impact and improve local and global healthcare systems.