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Academy of Research in OT

About AOTF   >   Awards and Honors   >   Academy of Research in OT
November 17, 2024

 

  

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Academy of Research In Occupational Therapy

AOREstablished in 1983, the AOTF Academy of Research in Occupational Therapy recognizes individuals who have made exemplary, distinguished, and sustained contributions toward the science of occupational therapy. Every year, the Academy of Research invites nominations for membership. After consideration of the nominations and supporting materials, the Academy selects individuals to be inducted into this distinguished body of researchers. Usually, inductions occur at the next AOTA Annual Conference and Exposition.  

Nominations submission deadline was October 30, 2024.

Nomination Procedures

View Presentations from the 2022 Academy of Research Inductees and 2022 Early & Mid-Career Awardees

View Presentations from the 2021 Academy of Research Inductees and 2021 Early & Mid-Career Awardees

2024 Inductees to the Academy

2024

Lindy Clemson, PhD, MAppSc (Research), BAppSc (OT), Dip OT, FOTARA, Emeritus Professor, Faculty of Medicine & Health Sydney School of Health Sciences, The University of Sydney Sydney, Australia

2024

Professor Emeritus Lindy Clemson is a specialist in public health research on ageing and an occupational therapist with a PhD in epidemiology. She has led research and advocacy internationally for best practice in home evaluation and falls prevention using environmental and enablement strategies. Her research has transformed approaches to fall prevention and provided new approaches and strategies to occupational therapy and medical practitioners and to a lay audience.

This work positively impacts the lives of countless older people around the world. Clemson’s contributions have been recognized by national and international entities, including being elected as an inaugural fellow of the Australian Occupational Therapy Research Academy, reflecting her exemplary, distinguished, and sustained contributions to the science of occupational therapy.

2024

Roberta Gittens Pineda, PhD, OTR/L, CNT, Associate Professor, Mrs. T.H. Chan Division of Occupational Science & Occupational Therapy, Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry, University of Southern California Los Angeles, Calif.

2024

Dr. Roberta Pineda is a tenured Associate Professor and Director of the NICU Laboratory within the Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy at the University of Southern California. She is also a founder and co-chair of the Neonatal Therapy Certification Board. Dr. Pineda’s impactful research program investigates factors that support or impede the function of infants born prematurely with a long-term goal of developing strategies and interventions that can optimize neurodevelopmental outcomes.

Over the past decade, she has received $7 million in grant funding to support the development and implementation of several innovative programs, assessments, and products that have revolutionized key aspects of the NICU environment, including an evidence-based multimodal program that facilitates positive sensory exposures in the NICU, a standardized neonatal feeding outcome measure, a new bottle technology that paces the timing of food intake, and a community-based program that addresses gaps in therapy services associated with the transition from NICU to home, especially among populations with known health disparities.

2024

Ganesh M. Babulal, PhD, OTD, MSCI, MOT, OTR/L, Associate Professor, Department of Neurology, Knight Alzheimer Disease Research Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri

2024

Dr. Ganesh M. Babulal is a tenured Associate Professor in the Department of Neurology at Washington University School of Medicine. Dr. Babulal’s research interests reside in investigating the relationship between cognition and mental health and its impact on instrumental activities of daily living in healthy older adults and those with chronic neurological diseases.

Consistent with these interests, his funded research studies include (1) characterizing functional changes in older adults using biomarkers (structural and functional imaging, cerebrospinal fluid, plasma), (2) predicting a decline in performance and behavior via novel methodologies, (3) identifying reliable noncognitive behavioral markers that predict preclinical disease state, and (4) examining the relationship between mental health and cognitive functioning on brain health.

As his research evolved, its progression grew from structural and social determinants of health (SSDOH) and health disparities while addressing the translational gap. This work has scaled up to now examine how upstream SSDOH factors impact adverse health outcomes in underrepresented, minoritized groups in the United States and vulnerable populations in Low and Middle-Income Countries.

 

 

Members of the Academy of Research

View Full List of Academy of Research Members At-A-Glance. * indicates a deceased member.

Janet L. Poole, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA
Helene Ross
/ Categories: AOTF Academy of Research

Janet L. Poole, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA

2008

Dr. Poole is Professor, Occupational Therapy Graduate Program, School of Medicine, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico.  Dr. Poole's research interest is in scleroderma and the functional impact of the disease on tasks of daily living, oral hygiene, parenting and employment.  She has conducted a number of studies examining rehabilitation interventions with people with scleroderma and, with a colleague, is developed a self-management program for persons with scleroderma.  She has also authored several textbook chapters on rehabilitation for persons with scleroderma.  (Retrieved on August 11, 2015 from http://www.occupationaltherapy.com/articles/occupational-therapy-and-scleroderma-systemic-2321.)

 

Q AND A

Identify three words that others have used to describe you.
Astute, generous, adaptable.
 
How do you hope to make a difference in the world through research?
I hope my research will stand the test of time, and become absorbed in the literature  to provide evidence that occupational therapy is a necessary and effective intervention.

What is one piece of advice you have for individuals considering a career in science and research?
Find an experienced and accomplished mentor.

Beside your own areas of inquiry, what is one research priority that you believe is important for the future of occupational science and occupational therapy?
Studies on the effectiveness of occupational therapy interventions and dissemination beyond occupational therapy literature.

Describe the most important role that mentors played in your professional journey.  
I think the most important thing I learned from my mentor is that the mentoring relationship is two-sided.  While I expected her to share her wealth of knowledge and experience with me, provide advice, timely feedback and support, I had to hold myself accountable and do my part to meet timelines, be open to feedback and suggestions, and follow through with goals we established.  She also provided me with useful contacts and recommended me for different volunteer positions and committees.

Identify a favorite occupation that renews you outside of your work.
I love to swim laps in an outdoor pool.  Luckily in New Mexico, I can swim outside about 5 months out of the year.

What has been the most surprising or rewarding aspects of a career in science and research?
I very surprised to find so many wonderful people who were willing to participate and help me in my research and that they thanked me for caring about how the condition affects their lives.  Since I work with people with a rare disease, my research is often done online, or through phone interview and surveys.  It is very rewarding to actually meet them at a local or national conferences.  


REFERENCES

Poole, JL, Gashytewa, C & Sullivan AT.  (2015). Activity limitations, participation, and quality of life in American Indians with and without diabetes. Occupational Therapy in Health Care. 2015 May 28. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 26020568.

Poole, JL, Chandrasekaran, A, Hildebrand, K & Skipper B.  (2015). Participation in life situations by persons with systemic sclerosis. Disability and Rehabilitation, 37, 842-845.

Poole, JL, Hare, KS, Turner-Montez, S, Mendelson, C & Skipper, B.  (2014). Mothers with chronic disease: a comparison of parenting in mothers with systemic sclerosis and systemic lupus erythematosus. OTJR; Occupation, participation and Health, 34, 12-19.

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