Samia H. Rafeedie, OTD, OTR/L, BCPR, CBIS, FAOTA: OT in Professional Leadership
In this episode, we will learn from Samia H. Rafeedie, OTD, OTR/L, BCPR, CBIS, FAOTA. Samia is the Director of the Professional Program in Occupational Therapy at the University of Southern California (USC), and professor of clinical occupational therapy. She has been on the faculty since 2008 and has primarily taught adult physical rehabilitation, kinesiology, and topics on professional development and association engagement. Samia has been an occupational therapist for 24 years, with additional practice interests in productive aging and geriatrics, pedagogy and higher education, mentorship, and volunteerism. She is the President of the Occupational Therapy Association of California (OTAC), and is invested in strengthening the association by recruiting and maintaining members. Some of her favorite occupations include spending time with her family, taking trips together, and going out to eat for Japanese food (their favorite!). She also LOVES volunteering for our state association. It fills her cup!
Q & A with Samia:
Please tell us a little about yourself and a few favorite occupations.
Samia Rafeedie is the Director of the Professional Program in Occupational Therapy at the University of Southern California (USC), and professor of clinical occupational therapy. She has been on the faculty since 2008 and has primarily taught adult physical rehabilitation, kinesiology, and topics on professional development and association engagement. Samia has been an occupational therapist for 24 years, with additional practice interests in productive aging and geriatrics, pedagogy and higher education, mentorship, and volunteerism. She is the President of the Occupational Therapy Association of California, and is invested in strengthening the association by recruiting and maintaining members. Favorite occupations include spending time with my family, taking trips together and going out to eat for Japanese food (our favorite!). I also LOVE volunteering for our state association. It fills my cup :)
What motivated you to contribute to this podcast series?
Having you come to our OT 618 Visionaries class last fall semester gave me a sense of promoting the beautiful and "out of the box" work that we do. People should hear about why we do what we do, and what we hope to accomplish in our roles!
Please describe the UncommonOT work that you do and the setting in which you work, the population you serve and the needs that you address.
I am the OTAC President and I'm trying to think outside the box to bring in more members, raise funds for education, and tap into the OT and OTA programs in the state to support the association. I am also working with Arameh Anvarizadeh as the future AOTA President to show collaborations between state and national and we have some really FRESH ideas that we are working on to show the collaboration between state and national association. It would be cool to have her on the show, as well! Actually, that sounds really nice. State and National Presidents together on the podcast!
What inspired you or drew you to this type of OT work?
I love the profession. I really do. And I love the students and believe they are the future of the profession so we have to bring them up so they can move forward and do this work one day. We have to become more powerful than ever to keep up with other powerful healthcare professions out there....and frankly, we should be tired of being the "nice guy" because we get WALKED ALL OVER and our profession is slowly being chewed up by people who try to take what we do and call it their own.
How did you get there? Can you describe your path?
Well, I was bored in my first job as an acute care OT in Cincinnati, OH, and my faculty advisor from The Ohio State University told me to go back to school and that I should apply to USC only. She told me I needed to learn more about occupational science. The rest is history. I got involved in OTAC and met amazing colleagues and friends and now I'm paying it forward, the same way they did.
Please describe a typical day or OT session at your uncommon setting? What OT skills do you utilize?
Well, being in academia, I come to work every day and either teach in the classroom, attend meetings, or respond to emails. In the evenings, I am on OTAC Zoom Meetings about 3 evenings per week. I do emails for OTAC starting as early as 5:00 in the morning, and work until about 8:30/9:00 pm. I work most weekends too. Sometimes both Saturday and Sunday in the morning. It just depends on the workflow, the projects, and the emails!
Can you talk about some recent highs (successes) and lows (challenges) of your current role?
Recent highs: I won the USC Award for Excellence in Mentoring!!!! Recent lows...or challenges....our membership numbers are rock bottom for OTAC and we really need to increase our revenue streams to ensure fiscal health for the association. It's been really challenging.....
How do you continue to learn in order to stay on top of things within your role?
I love going to AOTA and OTAC Conferences! Those are my favorite weeks/weekends of the year! That's where I see my OT family and do all of my learning!
Can you share a little bit about salary and compensation in this setting? How do OT or the services you provide get funded?
Working in academia has its perks, but salary is not one of them. I feel like we are severely underpaid for the work we do, especially since it's around the clock and off the clock. Volunteering for OTAC is unpaid.
Any career advice for our followers and listeners on how to get started on this path?
Sign up for an OTAC Committee! Attend a board meeting to see what it's all about! Come to OTAC Annual Conference, or present a Special Topics Forum! It's very easy to get involved and we always need more volunteers! If you are interested in a faculty appointment, please start presenting at conference and learning more about the academic setting. Attend the OTAC Academic Symposium every summer! The next one is on June 20 and it's a virtual symposium!
What’s a common myth or misconception about your job/role you’d like to call out or demystify?
Hah. I think people think academic work "is easy" and we get summers off. We are constantly answering emails, meeting with students, grading papers, and planning for the next semester. I don't know if people think OTAC leaders are paid, but we aren't....it's purely volunteer work.
How do we find you, follow you, be in touch with you, and promote your unique work?
Through OTAC social media account: otacofca and otshrtrojan on Instagram. I don't post too much....not my thing....social media is dangerous for me because I don't like seeing the news that is happening in the West Bank and Gaza, as a Palestinian American.
Please list any resources you would like me to include with your Show Notes (courses, articles, assessments, tools, etc.)
Here is the USC Chan Division website: https://chan.usc.edu/ and here is the OTAC website: otaconline.org
As always, I welcome any feedback & ideas from all of you, or if you are interested in being a guest on future episodes, please do not hesitate to contact Patricia Motus at transitionsot@gmail.com or DM via Instagram @transitionsot
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