Occupational Therapy
Service Opportunities
OT Department Receives International Service Grant
The Department of Occupational Therapy Education is pleased to receive a grant that funds occupational therapy students and faculty to travel to the Damien House in Duran, Ecuador to perform therapeutic services for area residents this fall. Damien House is a foundation that works to bring "dignity to the lives of those affected by Hansen's Disease." This disease, also known as leprosy, is chronic and infectious and is caused by tiny bacteria that invade the body. Symptoms and signs include nerve damage, skin lesions, weakened muscles and bone deterioration. “We were able to travel for two years in a row in ’00 & ’01, but since our funding ran out, we have not been back. There is a tremendous need for OT services, and we are thrilled to have this opportunity to return.” says Kris Vacek, Chairperson of the Department of Occupational Therapy Education. This trip will count as a Level I Fieldwork for the students. The nature of this experience will allow occupational therapy students a tremendous opportunity to use their gifts through service and experiential learning. We believe learning is conceptualized as a life-long process and for the student it begins in the classroom, but continues through guided clinical experiences that help to enrich and prepare the student for practice, leadership and service when they graduate from Rockhurst University.
Spring Break Service in Guatemala
Travel to Guatemala with other OT, PT, and CSD students during the annual spring break service trip to provide service and health care to those in need.
On past trips, students have seen patients with learning disabilities, cerebral palsy, foot deformities, spinal cord injuries, gun shot wounds and Dupuytren’s. Additional activities have included: working for the reforestation program, helping clean the operation and pre-operation rooms in the town clinic and helping teach English as the local school. Students have the opportunity to apply for international service trips. The cost is often discounted for students and supplemented by Rockhurst University.
Service at the American Stroke Foundation
Rockhurst University partners with the American Stroke Foundation (ASF) thanks to a grant from the Research Foundation. The partnership allows students in OT, PT, and CSD to offer weekly services to the patrons of the ASF Stroke Center. Janis Davis, assistant professor of occupational therapy, was involved in writing the grant.
"This program provides an opportunity for our students to work at the community level with persons who have suffered strokes," she said. "It provides the patrons of the Stroke Center with services at a community resource center to learn ways to adapt to their disabilities, and gives their families and caregivers support as they adjust to having a loved one with a disability."
Students have opportunities to interact with survivors of stroke and provide educational sessions.
OT and PT Pro Bono Clinic
The Pro Bono Clinic, developed by faculty and students from Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy, complements the learning and service mission of Rockhurst University. Developed in cooperation with the Kansas City Free Health Clinic, it provides a midtown clinic to serve the needs of people who are uninsured. This clinic enhances the quality of life for those citizens while helping Rockhurst faculty and students live our moral and economic responsibilities as citizens of this community.
Graduate students from OT and PT, in their final year of study, serve as clinic administrators. Assisted by faculty mentors, the clinic administrators organize and run each clinic. First, second, and third year PT and first and second year OT students volunteer to assist with evaluations and patient education. All students are supervised by academic and/ or clinical faculty from OT and PT.
|
