Melissa McDonough – Honorable Mention – “Force for Good” Alumni Video Contest
Melissa McDonough, a Master of Occupational Therapy (MOT) graduate of the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences (USAHS) campus in Austin, Texas, earned an honorable mention in the university’s “Force for Good” Alumni Video Contest. Melissa now works as a school-based pediatric occupational therapist at a non-public school for neurodiverse children.
The work centers on helping each student access their education. That covers sensory regulation, gross and fine motor skills, adaptive utensils for self-feeding, and daily living tasks like folding laundry with a low-tech folding board. Melissa’s favorite part of the job is community outings: students shop for groceries, then return to the classroom to cook with what they picked out.
Melissa credits the MOT program with the clinical skills, therapeutic use of self and client-centered care that school-based practice depends on, which makes this a useful look at pediatric OT in schools.
The “Force for Good” Alumni Video Contest was created by USAHS in 2023 to recognize alumni who are making an impact in their communities and professions.
Transcript
Melissa McDonough – Honorable Mention – _Force for Good_ Alumni Video Contest
[00:00:00] Melissa McDonough (USAHS Alumni): Hi, my name is Melissa. I attended the Masters of Occupational Therapy Program at the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences in Austin, Texas. This program taught me clinical skills, how to use my therapeutic use of self, and how to use client-centered care to prepare me to work as a school-based pediatric occupational therapist. [00:00:23] So come with me as I take you on my journey of how I use these skills to serve my community. I work at a non-public school with neurodiverse children who benefit from specialized support. I work on improving each student’s access to their educational program. This includes addressing many different areas such as sensory regulation, gross motor skills, using adaptive utensils for improved self-feeding, and to make cooking easier. [00:00:55] This is especially essential for students who may have mobility challenges. I also work on daily living skills such as folding laundry and incorporate low-tech options. For example, this folding board. Sequencing and completing the task of washing and drying a load of laundry, helping students access the playground, fine motor skills such as handwriting. I incorporate fun toys like this piggy bank to work on opening and closing containers and utilizing a pincer grasp. And my favorite part about my job as an occupational therapist is being able to take the students into the community to teach them how to grocery shop. [00:01:42] After the grocery trip is complete, I take the students back to their classroom, and we work on cooking with the ingredients that they picked from the store. The University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences has truly prepared me for my role as an OT.
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