Khatta Meetha OT TALK-DR SANTOSH SHINTRE

Introducing the fourth guest of my Column Khatta Meetha OT Talk is a dynamic professional with excellent skills and knowledge

Dr Santosh Shintre (OT)

Dr Santosh ,an Occupational therapist  is currently working in a skilled nursing facility with WYE OAK healthcare,hyattsville, Maryland ,USA.He is a Masters in Occupational therapy (M.OTh) Neuroscience from Seth G.S.Medical college,Mumbai.
He is internationally certified in basic NDT (Neuro developmental techniques).
Also certified in Sensory Integration (SI) Module 1 and 4.
He holds certification in Kinesiotaping 1 and 2.Further he has his expertise in Narrative therapy.
He has conducted workshop for handwriting at Delhi.Has been speaker and facilitator at multiple workshops and training.
He has worked for a long time with Umeed Child development centre in Mumbai and has been actively involved  a part of various studies and training.
Besides this he is also passionate about sports like table tennis,cricket and badminton and enjoys engaging in the same during his leisure time.

I have observed his sessions and had extensive case discussions that always developed an insight to clinical reasoning.I have learnt a lot of professional etiquette and skills from him and i am greatful to him for the same.

So presenting to you all his views on some other dimensions of Occupational therapy.

1)How will you critique Occupational therapy as a career?

Occupational Therapy is a unique healthcare profession with a holistic approach of creativity and scientific methods for assisting the individual towards independent living through all age groups.

2) Describe one moment you felt proud to be an OT?

Every step of my journey in this profession has been memorable for me. And the relationship I could make with various people is my biggest earnings. To be specific in regards to the people I helped is about a person with C5-C7 injury who I started treating since day 1 when even the one of the top most orthopedic surgeon said that he would be on bed all his life and nothing could be done, to get him to stand and walk was a greatest achievement.  The appreciation, the smile and satisfaction that I get from the clients and colleagues will always be a treasure for me.

3) A lot of young OTs find it difficult to make a decision of moving overseas or staying in India What will you advise them? 

In my opinion everyone has their own dreams but staying clear with your goal and knowing what is important and what you want from life will help to make that decision. I feel it's a journey everyone go through and reach their destination. It could may not be clear in the beginning but eventually you will get their.

4)What is your opinion on Monetary remuneration and job opportunities that Ots get in India?

In my opinion, there is difference in what it was when I was in bachelors and now, things are changing. Lot of OT professionals are diverging into different opportunities to be entrepreneurs, overseas. It getting better and people are being more aware. I see it to be more bright as we are indulging in to different streams.

 

5)Do you think professional overlap and encroachment is taking away identity of Occupational therapy?If so how can this be dealt practically?

According to me the overlap is there because OT is more holistic and functional. It's not limited to just cognitive, or pediatric or mental health. But in our minds we need to be more clear with our profession, we should be able to explain others, and we need to be able to demarcate our professional lines with others.  Be creative and not to think just conventional.

Your highlights
*My Professional Strength -I am good with patient communication and very approachable.

*I am fond of-sports, sketches, discussions in person.My profession helps me to unwind myself in ways that I would have never discovered otherwise.

*I prefer the most-I love being flexible.

*Two words for life- Being yourself.

P.S:I extend my gratitude to him for giving me time in-spite of different time zones.Thank you for reading, see you all next Saturday with another guest.

-SSW

Khatta Meetha OT TALK- Dr Yash Gupta

Dr Yash Gupta(OT)

Introducing the third guest of my Column Khatta Meetha OT Talk is an enthusiast and a talented person who has always been at lead to learn and grow in non conventional ways.

An intern of Occupational therapy at Seth G.S.Medical college and KEMh,Dr Yash P Gupta

is a young budding Occupational Therapist with keen interest in Ergonomics, Innovative Technology in Rehabilitation and community healthcare management.
He believes that the passion of innovation can only be fulfilled by good foundation of knowledge, trying new things and research.

He has done observer-ship and trained himself under many renowned professionals at multiple cities experiencing different aspects of OT and Rehabilitation setups.

He is a part of various studies related to ergonomics and has 3 papers published on his name.He is also working on many individual and joint projects related to health care.He is passionate of traveling,going for treks,horse riding,playing badminton, exploring the fineness of dramatics and art.

He believes to learn beyond books and has been doing this since years.So let's read his views further.

1)If you have to convey Occupational therapy in a well understood note,How would you do so?

The Science & Art of Medicine, a profession where Humanity is highlighted to its greatest keeping individual needs its priority.

2) Has your career choice been instrumental in shaping your life?If yes how do you look forward in future?

Yes, pursuing OT is one of my best decisions in life .I always wanted to pursue something different which gives me a vast variety of working population along with serving the society & and this profession gives me this contentment.

I look up to work as an OTist & Entrepreneur working for masses yet focusing on individual needs.     

3)Having worked on independent projects,how will you describe your journey so far?

Just similar to a Himalayan Trek where you climb for 5 continuous days and on every evening after reaching the camp site you get a mesmerizing view and adjacent to that a huge mountain that has to be concurred next day. I am yet to reach the peak and work on bigger projects.

4)What is your opinion on entrepreneurship regard of Occupational therapist?

A thing which everyone should think at least once to do. The profession has a lot of scope, money and satisfaction in the near future.

Occupational Therapist(s) can make small groups of Therapist having different skill set each to provide their services to the society keeping a local reach to ensure quality and can maintain excellent work life balance. This model can be further taken up to huge populations with good entrepreneurial and managerial skills.

5)What are the challenges a fresh graduate faces while exploring different areas of OT practice?

1. Lack of confidence in their own ideas to explore the field which is not mainstream preventing them to try new things.

2. Self comparison with other professionals and unable to take your own stand.

3 Ambiguity in defining roles while working in team setup.  

Your highlights:

*My Professional Strength : Taking Initiatives.  

*My Passion: Seeking excitement and experiencing adventure in  every aspect of life.

*I dislike the most: Monotonous work

*The word that describes me : JUGGAD

Yash Prakash Gupta
Intern - OT Seth GSMC & KEMH 

 P.S:I extend my gratitude to him for giving me time and putting efforts.Thank you for reading, see you all next Saturday with another guest.

-SSW

Exploring the Doccumentation culture

Dear Readers,

You must have come across the quote "Well done is better than well said " indeed your work should be your narrative but today i would like to add to this 'Well documented work  is equal to how well you worked'

Documentation is an essential aspect of any practice as the words put down establishes a concreteness to your work.
From an OT perspective,it is important to include the habit of writing good clinical notes as it provides a framework for future reference as well as reflects the depth of your analysis and intervention.

Unfortunately this habit lacks in many fresh graduates who start with private practice or even if affiliated to an organization are not able to execute due to contextual constraints.
Talking to one of my US colleague,i got the glimpse of importance laid to this aspect of treatment and how a well documented notes is given better regard in different areas of practice.

Speaking to graduate students and experiencing this myself when i was a student,the extent of practice to integrate clinical reasoning and an effective documentation was inadequate.This again is  subjective and my individual perception,however there can be difference of opinion and may be there improvisation in this area of learning .Also this subject varies across different colleges.

But i personally feel,the scenario that i described is not very uncommon and has led to weak foundation amongst students.
There is a lot of talking amongst the educational institutes about importance of documentation and why it should be done but the approach of driving this practice in each student lacks at any places.

Just like the way MMT grades or MAS gets induced in the minds of all the students and after a point of time gets too instant to require moments of thinking lacks when we talk about documentation.This is because it is not practiced with same fervor.
I am sure in a year,each student practices MMT at least a 100 times and i am equally sure that 10% of this is not invested in practicing documentation skills.

Now if somebody reverts saying its a skill that needs to be developed and refined,i would say ,before that it needs to be sown.If this is incorporated as regular assignment at all educational institutes of occupational therapy(although happening at many places) would carve a more skilled set of professionals.

Talking about SOAP NOTES or SMART GOALs,lets together improve and innovate the documentation style .This practice shall be done regularly on my blog.
I would notify the same and hope my future posts will be of benefit.

-SSW

P.S:The views expressed are my personal opinion and are not with the intention to disregard anyone.

Khatta Meetha OT Talk-Dr SACHIN RATHOD

Introducing the second guest on my Saturday OT talk column is a young, very dynamic and a budding Occupational therapist who is following his passion and exploring the non mainstream areas of practice.His dedication and commitment to his work is appreciable.

Dr Sachin Rathod

Dr Sachin Rathod has completed his Bachelor in occupational therapy ( B.O.T.h) from

Seth G.S. Medical College and KEMh .

He is Founder and Director at 'Health and Fitness-at same place’.
www.healthfitot.com

Consultant Occupational therapist at Superfit Asia.

Consultant Occupational therapist at RAPTfx.

Consultant Occupational Therapist and Sports specific trainer at NSCI and Bombay Gymkhana.
He is also a Volunteer at Yash charitable trust- working with differently abled Adults

Among-st all this he is an adventurous person who goes on regular treks and expedition,maintains his fitness and is an excellent dancer.

So let's read his views further

1)What is your proud OT moment ?

All those moments when my patient(s) or client(s) recognised me as an Occupational Therapist.

2)What is your opinion on career opportunities for a fresh graduate in India?

Apart from Pediatrics practice, there are many fields where our post graduate students can make 

career, like in Sports, Industrial rehabilitation or in Corporate offices to assess posture and give intervention. I must say, OTist can  work as Pre-habilitational therapist who can teach techniques to avoid injuries in daily bases work or in sports.

3) What are the struggle that a fresh OT graduate faces in India ?

Recognition  and limited options  for work.

4)How can these be worked upon?

By spreading awareness about occupational therapy and our role in various field or conditions.

This can be done by taking free hands on workshops or stall at various event. And also organizing events. 

5)Sports and fitness being your area of interest,how do you view the role of Occupational therapy service to this?

Sports is an occupation of  a particular person, so as an  occupational therapist it's our job to help him/her to get back on field with the help of rehabilitation and also teach true techniques which can prevent future injuries ( Pre-habilitation).

As we know, if your posture is not correct they suffer from some physical discomfort which directly affect their productivity. So by analyzing and providing appropriate treatment you can increase their productivity.

Your highlights

*My professional experience: Count on the moments of learning than the years in it.

* I am fond of: Adventure

*I can leave you amazed with my: Work

*My free time passion: Innovation

P.S:I extend my gratitude to him for giving me time and putting efforts.Thank you for reading, see you all next Saturday with another guest.

-SSW

Khatta Meetha OT Talk-Dr Pooja Mehta

Introducing to you all a very special and a multi talented guest  who is an empathetic human,an excellent professional and my favourite mentor.

Dr Pooja Mehta (OT)

Dr Pooja Mehta.
Assistant Professor (OT) at Nair hospital, Mumbai Central, Mumbai
Founder and Consultant Occupational Therapist of Anmol Child Development Clinic, Kandivali west, Mumbai.

M.O.Th Developmental Disabilities from Seth GS Medical College.
FAOT Neuro-developmental disorders
Pursuing MA Clinical Psychology
Areas of practice :

• Pediatric Occupational Therapy 
• Child & Adult Psycho social Occupational Therapy
• School based Occupational Therapy

So here's her short interview:

1)Who will you call a good Occupational therapist?

Occupational Therapist with excellent activity analysis, sound clinical reasoning, in depth theoretical knowledge, creative outlook and empathic nature.

2)How will you describe your journey in this field?
Enriching.

3) As an Academic professional what is your advise to younger OTs?
Read textbooks and research papers.And promote OT by doing and publishing your research work..

4)Enlist five problems that OT professionals face on a regular basis?
Professional unawareness among other doctors and common man.
Professional overlap with other professions..
In pvt practice, professional isolation..
In hospital practice, poor autonomy..
Due to less number of OTist graduating,  recruited and practicing, Quality of work hampered

5)Can you suggest some practical ideas to deal with them ?
Sunday free awareness camps, blogging, videos/social networking sites, digital media use, newspaper articles, OT talks for doctors and common man, quality research papers,documenting your clinic work etc.

Your highlights

My Professional strength : 9 yrs of clinical experience and regular habit of updating knowledge via reading textbooks, research papers and attending COTE & conferences..

I can.... Knock u clean bowled on cricket pitch

My Experience :OT prepares u to be spontaneous and pragmatic..

The depth of my views is same as your depth of understanding


Dr Pooja is also
Vedic Maths scholarship recipient

Black belt in Shotokan karate from Dev Shotokan Karate Do International, Mumbai.

Bachelor of classical dance (Bharat Natyam) (Reg no. 2357) from Art society Mumbai.

Visharad in Vedic Astrology (3 yrs course) from Vedic Jyotish Sansthan, Mumbai. 

Amongst all this she is an artist and sports woman,who has won various medals in cricket and carrom.


P.S:I extend my gratitude  to her for giving me time and motivating further with her kind words.
see you all next Saturday with another guest.


-SSW

Khatta Meetha OT Talk

 Saturday Storming!

I am excited to introduce a new column on my blog.

This column will be featuring Occupational therapy Professionals and a short interview post.

Highlights of this is it is 5 questions 5 sentence interview along with a brief introduction and a rapid round.
The questions will be about deeper perspective of Occupational therapy and to maintain the spontaneity at mutually fixed time a fifteen minutes time frame is established.
The post will be featured every Saturday ,introducing to you all one dynamic professional every Saturday.

The purpose of the activity is to appreciate the talents of OT,regard their views and chain a solution to unheard questions.

So be ready for my very special first guest soon..

Thank you for reading!

-SSW

Brain ! Why so beautiful.i)

P.S:This set of articles will be series of research perks on human brain and interesting catches !

Brain,the heart of life,that beats to the rhythm of numerous structures,pathways,connections and circuits.Its a part that is central organ of nervous system and holds the most essential functions to regulate us.Its a laboratory that is equipped with many parallel projects functioning together to maintain equilibrium.

Scientists have been constantly in to research exploring its vastness each day.Verily the creator,the lord of all has made this structure intricately beautiful ,one can appreciate it more once you begin to study its fineness.

I shall be highlighting a few of the research information that i have been following.

This article highlights on one of the most crucial debates in human paleoneurology which concerns the timing and mode of the emergence of the derived cerebral features in the hominin fossil record. Given its exceptional degree of preservation and geological age (i.e., 3.67 Ma), StW 573 (‘Little Foot’) has the potential to shed new light on hominin brain evolution.

“The endocast of StW 573 (“Little Foot”) and hominin brain evolution” by Amélie Beaudet, Ronald J. Clarke, Edwin J. de Jager, Laurent Bruxelles, Kristian J. Carlson, Robin Crompton, Frikkie de Beer, Jelle Dhaene, Jason L. Heaton, Kudakwashe Jakata, Tea Jashaihvili, Kathleen Kuman, Juliet McClymont, Travis R. Pickering, Dominic Stratford in Journal of Human Evolution. Published December 18 2018.
doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2018.11.009

In 1987, political scientist James Flynn of the University of Otago in New Zealand documented a curious phenomenon: broad intelligence gains in multiple human populations over time. 

 Researchers have also proposed a slew of other hypotheses to explain individual variation in human intelligence. The variety of proposed mechanisms underlines the scientific uncertainty about just how intelligence arises.Read article https://www.the-scientist.com/features/the-biological-roots-of-intelligence-64931?_ga=2.102641414.668049163.1546450789-1269576698.1546450789

The biological roots of Intelligence

 Below are three of these hypotheses, each backed by experimental evidence and computational modeling:

 Next is interesting to understand how brain brain cells filter information in groups?
A new study reports the neurons that focus on coarse visual details could change to prefer finer details under different conditions. The findings shed new light on the neural mechanism that helps shape our perception of the world.

When we perceive the world around us, certain objects appear to be more noticeable than others, depending on what we do. For example, when we view a forest-covered mountain from a distance, the forest looks like a large green carpet. But as we get closer, we start noticing the individual trees, and the forest fades to the background. What happens in the brain as our experience changes so drastically?
For decades, scientists studying the visual system thought that individual brain cells, called neurons, operate as filters. Some neurons would prefer coarse details of the visual scene and ignore fine details, while others would do the opposite. Every neuron was thought to do its own filtering.
A new study led by Salk Institute researchers challenges this view. The study revealed that the same neurons that prefer coarse details could change to prefer finer details under different conditions. The work, which appeared in the journal Neuron on December 31, 2018, could help to better understand neural mechanisms that shape our perceptions of the world.

Read further  “Mechanisms of Spatiotemporal Selectivity in Cortical Area MT” by Ambarish S. Pawar, Sergei Gepshtein, Sergey Savel’ev, and Thomas D. Albright in Neuron. Published December 31 2018. doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2018.12.002


There has been continuous research happening on the mechanism of brain functioning and each day some discovery is made.Thus further on i shall be reviewing and simplifying at-least five articles every week and putting it up on the blog for all the readers to gain benefit from the same.I anyone wishes to seek more information can write to me and i shall put up the required content.


-SSW