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Group of six serves children via Therapy Volunteers International

This past September, a group of six students from the С����Ƶ Occupational Therapy Doctoral Program traveled to Belize on a mission trip with the non-profit group Therapy Volunteers International, serving children with a wide variety of diagnoses. 

The one-week fieldwork rotation was led by occcupational therapy professors Dr. Allie Turner, Dr. Christina Boone, and Dr. Courtney Addison. 

Turner, the program’s academic fieldwork coordinator, decided on Belize for a number of reasons, but largely because of the clinic’s partnership with Stella Maris, a small school that serves children with disabilities. 

“I wanted to do something that would help students understand the clinic experience, so when I found this clinic in Belize that partnered with a school, I felt like it would be a good fit for a good, strong partnership,” Turner said. 

While in Belize, the students gained hands-on experience–planning interventions, running sessions, providing parent education, and doing evaluations with the children. 

“We spent the whole first session just working on regulation, and by the last session, she was working on self-regulation and participating in multiple activities, all while having a big smile on her face,” said student Morgan Norris of the child she worked with.

Turner said the work was essential not only to the children they served but also for the OT students.

“When you’re a student, you get to develop your clinical style, your partnerships, your idea of what you want your clinical practice skills to look like, and develop your heart for service and mission as your foundation before you actually go out into the world and practice,” said Turner.  

For the students, this experience was an incredible opportunity to build their confidence and hone their skills, reaffirming for many that they’re following the path they were meant to. 

“With each session, I found myself gaining more confidence as a future OT,” said Rebecca O’Neal. “This was the most amazing experience, and I will take with me the skills I learned and the memories of these children who inspired me.” 

“It helped build confidence in myself and showed me that I’m doing exactly what I’m supposed to be doing, and I’m making a huge impact on children,” said Mackenzie Dilworth

For the professors, it was incredible to watch the students become more independent and their confidence grow over the course of the week as they continued to work with the children. 

“The students got to know the clients, screened them all, got to know tidbits about them, and filled out occupational profiles on them,” said Turner. “And then they started to develop that confidence and independence as the week progressed, running the sessions independently.” 

For both the students and professors, this trip and the experience gained in the clinic highlighted the importance of giving back and the bonds that can be created in the process. 

“The sense of international interprofessional community we see when we cross cultures, that we learn, respect, and understand, was impactful,” said Turner. “Pouring into another community, even when we don’t always have the same background or the same practices, but the connection and the joy that they served with one another and got to build one another up.” 

At the end of the week-long rotation, these six students were left with a life-changing experience, a newfound confidence in their skills, and a deeper appreciation for their field.