Outspoken OT

Episode 18: Social Media, Rehabilitation Science, and the New Authority Crisis Episode Overview Social media has fundamentally changed how rehabilitation professionals access, consume, and disseminate information. Research that once moved slowly through journals, conferences, and continuing education courses can now reach thousands of clinicians in a matter of hours. This shift has created unprece...

Episode 17 Occupation Under Pressure Part 9 (Final): The Future Is Ours to Build Episode Description Nine episodes. Over two hundred years. From asylum reforms in the 1790s to the federal loan crisis of 2026. From William Rush Dunton Jr prescribing purposeful activity before occupational therapy had a name, to a profession navigating AI auditing, prior authorization expansion, reimbursem...

Episode 16 Occupation Under Pressure Part 8: The Occupation Paradox (2010–Present) Episode Description Imagine spending one hundred years trying to answer a single question: what is occupational therapy? By the early 2010s, the profession finally had its answer. Occupational Science. The OTPF. MOHO, PEO, PEOP, CMOP-E. Qualitative and quantitative research supporting participation, meaning, habits,...

Episode 15 Occupation Under Pressure Part 7: The Cost of Being Taken Seriously (2000–2010) Episode Description Be careful what you wish for. By the year 2000, occupational therapy had accomplished things earlier generations could only dream about. Its own accrediting body. Its own science. Its own theoretical models. Its own growing evidence base. Its own place in schools, hospitals, communities,...

Episode 14 Occupation Under Pressure Part 6: Building Our Own House (1990–1999)   Episode Description Who gets to decide what occupational therapy is? For most of the profession's history, the honest answer was: not occupational therapists. Educational standards were tied to medicine. Scientific credibility was measured against medicine. Reimbursement was controlled by medicine. Even when OT...

Episode 13 Occupation Under Pressure Part 5: When Occupational Therapy Got a Seat at the Table (1970s–1980s)   Episode Description Picture occupational therapy in 1970. Not the profession — the room. A small hospital space with metal filing cabinets, paper charts, and a therapist in a white uniform. No electronic medical record. No OTPF. No ADA, no IDEA, no Section 504. No Medicare recognitio...

Part 4: OT Does Not Have to Choose Between Science and Occupation (1940–1969)   Episode Description World War II. Polio epidemics. The birth of rehabilitation medicine. The discovery of neuroplasticity. And some of the worst ethical violations in the history of modern healthcare — all happening at the same time, in the same system, often to the same vulnerable populations occupational therapy...

The Fight That Never Ended: OT's First Identity Crisis (1920–1939) Episode Description Have you ever sat through a faculty meeting, a conference presentation, or a social media debate about whether OT is too medical or not medical enough — and wondered why the profession is still having this conversation? The answer is in this episode. The years between 1920 and 1939 were the first time occupation...

Episode Description The early 1900s were not a quiet time to be building a new profession. America was industrializing, medicine was becoming increasingly scientific and measurable, and two completely opposing philosophies about disability and human worth were competing for dominance in the same cultural landscape. One said certain people were a burden on society. The other said every person deser...

Occupation Under Pressure, Part 1: Meaning vs. Medicine, OT's First Fight (1790–1899) Description Most occupational therapists were taught that their profession began in 1917. A founding meeting. Six people. A new organization. The official birth of OT. But that is not where the story starts. In this episode — the first in an eight-part series called Occupation Under Pressure — Michelle goes back...

Episode 8 HR1 Exposed Us: The Financial Crisis OT Should've Seen Coming Episode Description This one runs long. It has to. When the One Big Beautiful Bill Act dropped and Grad PLUS loans disappeared overnight, the occupational therapy community erupted. Social media feeds flooded with panic, confusion, and anger. AOTA mobilized. Students did the math and realized the numbers no longer worked. Educ...

In this episode of Outspoken OT, host Michelle Eliason, MS, OTR/L unpacks the data behind the 2023 OT Petition and National Survey — a grassroots effort that captured thousands of voices from across the profession. Practicing OTs, OTAs, students, educators, and even those who have left the field all said the same thing: the system designed to produce and protect competent occupational therapy prac...

Episode 6: Equality's Out, Equity's In — But What Does That Mean for OT? In this episode of Outspoken OT , Michelle Eliason examines one of the most significant changes introduced in the 2025 AOTA Code of Ethics: the replacement of equality with equity as a core value and the addition of advocacy as an ethical expectation for occupational therapy practitioners. Rather than reacting emotionally to...

Episode 5: We Are Giving Our Own Profession Away Introduction Occupational therapy has never lacked value—but we often struggle to communicate that value. In this episode of Outspoken OT , Michelle explores how the language we use to describe our profession may be unintentionally shrinking our own scope. Through current conversations, historical perspective, and practical solutions, this episode c...

Episode 4: ACOTE 2023 Standards — Preparing the Next Generation or Lowering the Bar? Introduction Occupational therapy education shapes every future practitioner who enters our profession. In this episode of Outspoken OT , Michelle examines the 2023 ACOTE Standards and the 2025 Interpretive Guide to explore how accreditation standards influence curriculum, clinical readiness, faculty expectations,...

Episode 3: Growing in Number, Shrinking in Value Introduction Occupational therapy is often described as one of the fastest-growing healthcare professions, with strong employment projections and increasing demand across the lifespan. But does growth automatically mean the profession is thriving? In this episode, Michelle examines the difference between workforce growth and professional value, intr...

Episode 2: The Ethics No One Wants to Talk About Michelle introduces one of the most difficult conversations facing occupational therapy today: ethical distress. This episode explores what happens when workplace expectations conflict with professional ethics and why protecting your integrity is one of the greatest challenges facing new clinicians. A Story Too Many Therapists Recognize The epi...

Episode 1: Who Cares Who Does What? The Real Scope Problem in Occupational Therapy   Episode Purpose The inaugural episode of Outspoken OT introduces the mission and philosophy behind the podcast while addressing one of the most controversial conversations in rehabilitation: scope of practice. Rather than debating ownership of specific tasks, this episode challenges listeners to reconsider wh...