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March 23, 2023

Teaching within the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences at Shawnee State University since 2020, Sandi Allen is a full-time Assistant Professor and Academic Fieldwork Coordinator within the Master of Occupational Therapy program. With experience as an Occupational Therapist for over three decades, she now shares her experience with students in the classroom at SSU.

Sandi Allen

“I have worked in a variety of practice areas including pediatric rehab, home health, acute care inpatient rehab, and adult outpatient rehab,” she said. “So, rehabilitation science and occupational therapy are my clinical areas of expertise.”

Previously, Allen spent most of her career at Our Lady of Bellefonte Hospital in Ashland, Kentucky. While there, she was able to serve as a Fieldwork Educator for many occupational therapy students from SSU. When she completed her Master of Health Science degree, she had a plan to transition her career into the field of academia. As a professor at SSU, she greatly enjoys being able to connect with former students and colleagues to learn about where their career paths are leading them and then pairing them up with current students for fieldwork.

“In addition to being an occupational therapist, I am a certified hand therapist, and I really enjoy teaching the students about an area of occupational therapy that I absolutely love,” she said. “I have had multiple chances to work with community members with upper extremity injuries to provide case-based learning experiences for the students and that clinical, hands-on aspect of teaching is very fulfilling.”  

Within Level II Fieldwork, Allen works with students from the SSU Master of Occupational Therapy program to transition into a clinical setting full-time, under the supervision of skilled occupational therapists. There, they perform all the activities that an occupational therapist performs including acute care, outpatient care, inpatient rehabilitation settings, pediatric outpatient settings, school systems care, nursing home care, and behavioral health settings.

In the field of Occupational Therapy and in the Rehabilitation Sciences, Allen sees a number of opportunities for future employment for graduates. Students have the ability to choose from various practices within the profession and there are opportunities to work in non-traditional settings as well.

To learn more about degrees within the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences at Shawnee State University, visit shawnee.edu/rehabilitation-sciences.