Hello, Renrenspeakers! Happy third Saturday of Occupational Therapy Month! April is just flying by! As you know, it is time for another inspiring blog interview. Part 3 of the Occupational Therapy Speaks mini blog series – CAPSTONE Edition is here! Today, we will be hearing about Kiley, a super down-to-earth, fun, and loving colleague of mine who had such a unique, cool capstone project. She always has a beautiful smile on her face, and her passion for the profession radiates through her everyday positive interactions. I am thrilled to share her journey today on the blog!

Irene: What is your name/pronouns?

Kiley: Kiley Foster, she/her 

Irene: Give us a quick synopsis of who YOU ARE! 

Kiley: My name is Kiley and I am a third-year OTD student at ATSU! I am from Tucson, AZ but in recent years have spent time in cities across the state including Gilbert and Flagstaff. I stayed local for college and attended the University of Arizona (beardown!) where I majored in Special Education and Rehabilitation with a minor in American Sign Language. Currently, I am in my final semester of grad school at A.T. Still University in Mesa, AZ, and am finalizing my capstone project. In my free time, I enjoy all things outdoors, especially hiking and skiing! I am passionate about fitness and became a group fitness instructor last year! I also love spending time with my friends and exploring new places across Arizona. I am so excited to be wrapping up OT school and entering this wonderful profession!!     

Irene: Why OT? Tell us a little bit about how you found OT and what got you into this field.

Kiley: I discovered the field of OT after my freshman year of college when I was looking to change my major. I originally entered college convinced I wanted to become an elementary special education teacher, but after a year, I realized that wasn’t the path for me. My mom, a former 4th/5th grade teacher, introduced me to their school’s OT, and after learning about her roles and doing further research into the OT field I was hooked. I was so inspired by the endless opportunities within this profession to work with diverse communities that I knew it was the profession for me! My experience prior to grad school was working with pediatrics, but during my senior year of college, my grandpa underwent open heart surgery followed by a stay in an inpatient rehab facility. Watching him go through this experience and working with his OT and PT further solidified my interest in this field and opened my eyes to the wide variety of opportunities to positively impact others!

Irene: Choose three words that come to mind when you think of occupational therapy. Define each word in relation to OT. Why did you choose these three words? 

Kiley:

Innovative – Occupational therapy promotes innovation at both the societal and individual levels as the profession advocates for societal changes in universal design and social inclusion for equal access for all, as well as exploring client-centered strategies to promote health, wellness, and participation in meaningful activities for all.   

Holistic – We work with the whole person, acknowledging them from both the medical model and the biopsychosocial model. OTs take into account all aspects that make up the person in order to provide meaningful care that addresses their needs. 

Inclusive – Providing a safe space for therapeutic interventions is an essential component of this profession. I value learning as much from others as I do providing services to them. This includes expanding on my cultural competence and disability etiquette to ensure all patients feel welcomed and valued.   

Irene: What is the most beautiful thing about OT to you? 

Kiley: That’s a tough question because this profession is so special! I’d say having the opportunity to provide functional, evidence-based treatments in a client-centered manner that is meaningful for the patient is super unique and leaves us with endless opportunities for growth and learning.

Irene: Let’s delve into your capstone a little more. What is your capstone about, and what initially inspired you to pursue your capstone topic? 

Kiley: My capstone is about the impact of individualized exercise programs on the perception of performance in winter adaptive sports! My site was High Country Adaptive Sports (HCAS) in Flagstaff, AZ. Prior to the on-site experience, I met with two recurring athletes from my site to develop an occupational profile. There, I administered a pre-survey, gathered quantitative measurements (range of motion/manual muscle testing), and determined their fitness goals. I then developed their exercise programs which they completed for 10 weeks before starting the ski season in January. After the adaptive ski season concluded, I administered the post-survey to assess if they felt any changes in their strength and endurance since completing the program. 

I was inspired to pursue a capstone in adaptive sports after joining the adaptive sports special interest group at my school. There, I learned about opportunities to get involved with programs across Arizona, and HCAS was one of them! I was lucky to lock up my capstone site fairly early in the process and the rest is history!  

Irene: What has been one win during your capstone and one aspect that has been difficult for you during this capstone process? 

Kiley: There were a few challenges that I encountered during this process. The first was working with a community-based site rather than a traditional clinical site. My supervisor was not an OT which was different than my prior rotations. My capstone experience was very self-directed which was intimidating and overwhelming at the start. It proved to be a great opportunity to grow in self-advocacy as I learned to speak up about my needs and interests! 

Additionally, one of my two participants chose not to finish the program which was difficult to navigate. Adherence to exercise programs is a major limitation in the available literature which was reassuring and will be what I report on in my final paper.  

Irene: For future students pursuing their capstone journey, what advice would you give them? 

Kiley: Spend time in your first year exploring your interests! Even if you are not sure about something, don’t be afraid to give it a try! If I wouldn’t have joined the adaptive sports group I would have never discovered my capstone site! Get involved in organizations at school because you will likely be introduced to new passions and interests! If you decide to go to a community-based site, be sure to solidify a plan and detailed objectives to ensure you have the guidance necessary to both fill your time as well as offer meaningful services to your site. 

Irene: What have you learned about yourself through your capstone experience?

Kiley: I have learned that I am capable of handling change and can use unforeseen circumstances as motivation to explore alternative options. Things may not go according to plan and that’s okay!!! I also learned how to ski and became an adaptive ski instructor which was a bonus!  

Irene:  What are your plans for the future of OT?

Kiley: My future plans are still up in the air! Despite thinking I wanted to work with peds after OT school, I’m leaning more toward working with adults. I’m fairly open to what setting I start in. Maybe a SNF, inpatient, or acute? I also got to work with a lot of veterans during capstone and would love to do more of that in the future! Long story short, I don’t really know yet lol but I am excited to start the job hunt! All I hope is to find a job that I enjoy! 

Irene: Can folks connect with you to learn more about you/support you? If so, please drop your social media info and other creative pursuits down below!

Kiley: Yes definitely! Reach out anytime! Email: kileyfoster99@gmail.com or Instagram: @kileyfosterr  

Irene: Anything else you want us to know about you or anything you want to share with the readers? Feel free to drop it down below! 

Kiley: Thank you Irene for this opportunity!! You’re the best ❤ 

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Kiley, thank you so much for sharing your beautiful journey to becoming an OT! Honestly, I really never heard anything about adaptive sports before coming into grad school, and I have learned so much about this very niche, significant area of practice through our prior conversations. I think it is fascinating that through the expansive connections that grad school can provide us, you were able to find your dream site. You emphasize why it is so important to network and join organizations because you never know who you will meet and where they will take you! Adaptive sports is inclusion at its finest, as people with all abilities should be able to still partake in their favorite occupations such as sports in this case, while eliminating as many environmental barriers as we can as OTs assisting this population. I agree with you when you say that working for a community-based site rather than a traditional clinical site presents with some differing challenges. However, I honestly believe that this opportunity allows us to further advocate for OT in a creative way that forces us to be self-starters, leaders, and pave our own roles and positions. Clearly, there is value of OT being immersed in these community-based sites, as you marvelously highlighted using your capstone journey as a prime example. Also, the fact that you learned how to ski during capstone while simultaneously becoming a ski instructor is SO cool! Sidebar – you being a group fitness instructor is so fun and I would love to attend one of your classes one day! 😉

That is a wrap on the third blog interview for the series today! If yall want to continue to make strides in the world of adaptive sports, Kiley is that girl! Don’t forget that she is a ski instructor AND a fitness instructor – what can’t she do? Next week marks the LAST interview of the series (so sad!), so don’t miss it! Part 4 of the Occupational Therapy Speaks mini blog series – CAPSTONE Edition will be dropping next SATURDAY! Until then, stay blessed and don’t forget to follow the Renrenspeaks Instagram page if you haven’t already for updates!

Peace and love,

Irene