"If the Pelvic Floor Is Not Healthy, There Is No Occupation We Can Perform" with Alyson Stover, AOTA President

Learn more about the first ever Trauma-Informed Pelvic Health CertificationThe 3rd Annual OTs in Pelvic Health Summit happens Aug 17-18, 2024!In this episode, AOTA President Alyson Stover and I talk about:Her 6 priorities as President of the AOTA.Why does she think that OTP's are well suited for pelvic healthHow does pelvic health remind her of other emerging practice areas and what has worked to gain traction for those areas?How is the AOTA working towards expanding occupational therapy's role in pelvic health within the broader healthcare system?  How does she navigate the balance between business and healthcare aspects in occupational therapy? She shares her process in making difficult decisions and share some lessons learned since becoming president.She shares a book that has deeply influenced your philosophy towards occupational therapyWhat would she tell the OTP listening to this episode who is struggling with feeling misunderstood or burnt out in their field?A little bit more about Alyson Stover:A childhood family trauma introduced Alyson Stover, MOT, JD, OTR/L, BCP to the power of occupational therapy. A subsequent lifetime of study and practice convinced her that patient advocacy was every bit as essential as her technical practice of occupational therapy.That would be a pretty full slate for most OTs, but it doesn't begin to describe all of Stover's accomplishments. Stover founded and owns Capable Kids, a private outpatient pediatric practice north of Pittsburgh that provides physical and speech and language therapy services in addition to occupational therapy. She's also an associate professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy at the University of Pittsburgh School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences. In July 2021, she will begin a four-year term as president-elect/president of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), representing over 100,000 OT practitioners. Stover is the first Pitt faculty member to hold this national leadership position.Stover earned a bachelor's degree in rehabilitation science and her master's degree (MOT) from Pitt. Like all licensed OTs, she passed the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT) certification exam and met other Pennsylvania commonwealth licensure requirements. As if all that wasn't impressive enough, she also holds a Juris Doctor and a post-graduate certificate in health law, both of which provide a solid foundation for championing patients' rights.____________________________________________________________________________________________Pelvic OTPs United - Lindsey's off-line interactive community for $39 a month! Inside Pelvic OTPs United you'll find:​Weekly group mentoring calls with Lindsey. She's doing this exclusively inside this community. These aren't your boring old Zoom calls where she is a talking head. We interact, we coach, we learn from each other.​Highly curated forums. The worst is when you post a question on FB just to have it drowned out with 10 other questions that follow it. So, she's got dedicated forums on different populations, different diagnosis, different topics (including business). Hop it, post your specific question, and get the expert advice you need.More info here. Lindsey would love support you in this quiet corner off social media!