Congratulations to our 2021 Intervention Research Grant Recipients:

Jewel Elias Crasta ,PhD, OTR/L, Ohio State University
Characterizing Occupational Therapy Intervention for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders
Mentor: Amy Darragh, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA

Marion Russell, OTD, OTR/L, Creighton University
Impact of COVID-19 on Family Quality of Life and Healthcare Access for Families with a Child with Diabetes
Mentor: Vanessa Jewel, PhD, OTR/L

Areum Han, OTR/L, PhD, University of Alabama at Birmingham
A Guided Eight-Week Online Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) Intervention for Distressed Family Caregivers of People with Dementia: A Mixed-Methods Pilot Study
Mentor: Hon Yuen, PhD, OTR/L

Amy Armstrong-Heimsoth, OTD, OTR/L, Northern Arizona University
Easing the Transition: Occupational Therapy Life Skills Curriculum for Former Foster System Youth
Mentor: Heather Williamson, DrPH

Grace Kim, PhD, OTR/L, New York University
Promoting Adherence in Upper Extremity Home-Based Rehabilitation Through Motivational Interviewing and Ecological Momentary Assessment: A Feasibility Study
Mentor: Yael Goverover, PhD, OTR/L

The purpose of this grant program is to lay the necessary groundwork for larger intervention studies and for larger implementation studies and support the profession’s Vision 2025 of occupational therapy as an evidence-based profession. The intent of the IRG program is to provide seed funding for the development of new and/or novel ideas in order to generate preliminary data as proof of concept. Most larger funders, including federal sources and most of the major nonprofit foundations, require this data in order to apply to them, yet sources to fund this preliminary work are limited at best. The AOTF IRG occupies a very important niche and fills a critical gap by investing in the development of ideas and data in the early state of the occupational therapy research enterprise. 

The Intervention Research Grant program receives donations from The National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT®), the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), and the St. Catherine Challenge.  

Congratulations to the 2021 Implementation Research Grant Recipients:

Lisa Juckett PhD, OTR/L, CHT, Ohio State University
Strategies to Promote the Implementation of Outcome Measures in Stroke Rehabilitation
Mentor: Amy Darragh PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA

Roberta Pineda PhD, OTR/L, CNT, University of Southern California
Implementation of the Baby Bridge Program via Telehealth to Enhance Access to Early Intervention Services in Los Angeles
Mentor: Carol Peden MB, ChB, MD, FRCA, FFICM, MPH

Sally Wasmuth PhD, OTR, Indiana University
Implementation of Narrative Theatre for Occupational Justice Promotion
Mentor: Dawn Bravata MD

The IR grant specifically supports research that is focused on helping occupational therapists take evidence-informed practice from theory to reality in their practice setting. This research grant develops and evaluates the processes used to implement, sustain, and or scale-up evidence-based practice into routine care with an end goal to improve the quality and effectiveness of care.

Learn more about the IR Grant.

Congratulations to our 2021 Health Services Research Grant Recipients:

Jun Li PhD, Syracuse University
Acute Occupational Therapy Spending in the National Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement Program
Mentor: Andrew Ryan PhD

Daniel Whitney, PhD, University of Michigan
The Effect of Rehabilitation Utilization on Risk of Fragility Fracture and its Related Disease, Mortality, and Healthcare Cost Burden for Adults with Cerebral Palsy: Providing Actionable Information to Inform Rehabilitation Efforts
Mentor: Susan Murphy ScD, OTR/L, FAOTA

Anne Zachry PhD, OTR/L, University of Tennessee Health Science Ctr.
Inequities in Access and Impact of Post-Stroke Home Occupational Therapy Services in a Statewide Medicaid Population
Mentor: Jim Bailey MD, MPH, FACP

Health Services Research (HSR) examines how people get access to health care, how and what care is delivered, the cost of that care, and what happens to patients as a result of receiving or not receiving care.  Specifically, HSR is a multidisciplinary field that studies how social factors, financing systems, organizational structures and processes, health technologies, and personal behaviors affect access to health care, the quality and costs of health care, and ultimately, the health and well-being of health care consumers. 

The Health Services Research Grant program is made possible through a generous donation from NBCOT.

Learn more about the HSR Grant

Strategies to Promote the Implementation of Outcome Measures in Stroke Rehabilitation
Mentor: Amy Darragh PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA

Implementation of the Baby Bridge Program via Telehealth to Enhance Access to Early Intervention Services in Los Angeles
Mentor: Carol Peden, MB, ChB, MD, FRCA, FFICM, MPH