This summer, Sargent students in the Doctor of Occupational Therapy (OTD) program spent two weeks in Brazil learning about the country’s healthcare system and its model of occupational therapy. Led by Pedro Almeida, a clinical assistant professor, and Tatiana Pontes, a clinical associate professor and the Entry-Level OTD program director, students saw occupational therapists practicing in settings such as oncology, rheumatology, mental health, NICU, and maternity care. Almeida led a workshop on orthoses for Sargent students and occupational therapists at the Universidade de Brasilia hospital. The group shared experiences, learned how to make orthoses, discussed current clinical cases at the hospital, and used their clinical reasoning to identify the best client interventions.

The trip was added this year as part of the OTD curriculum, and organized and led by the department’s internationally licensed faculty.