Lauren Sheehan, OTD, OTR/L: OT in Technology
In this post, we will be learning about an occupational therapy practitioner in technology. You will hear from the personal and professional experiences of Lauren Sheehan, OTD, OTR/L. Lauren is the current Director of Product with Neurolutions, Inc. and has been in industry roles for the last four years. Lauren has held clinical roles in outpatient neuro-rehabilitation for over a decade as well as administrative roles in clinic management. She is the chair-elect for the Technology Networking Group of the American Congress of Rehab Medicine and founding co-chair of the Clinical Managers Task Force, supporting clinicians in industry roles in rehabilitation medicine. Lauren is the former Productive Aging Special Interest Section Technology Coordinator for the American Occupational Therapy Association. She has recently served as an Adjunct Faculty Member at Samuel Merritt University in Oakland, CA as well as other OT programs throughout her career. Lauren is the co-founder of the Rehab Tech Summit, an online conference, and community that aims to bring together industry professionals and rehabilitation clinicians, researchers, and entrepreneurs to share information and ideas in the rehabilitation technology space. She has a consultancy, Beyond the Clinic, which aims to support clinicians in their transition to non-clinical roles, specifically in the technology field, as well as companies as they explore the fit of their products in the rehabilitation market. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her son and partner, eating her way through travels around the world, singing karaoke, and enjoying time with family.
Q & A with Lauren:
Please tell us a little about yourself and a few favorite occupations.
I am a midwestern gal living in California, working for my second start-up in the tech industry. I love biking and hiking, the arts including live music and live theater, I am a singer and former theater nerd (retained the nerd part, I just don't do musical theater much anymore). I like traveling abroad and having daily adventures as a new mom of a 5-month-old little boy.
What motivated you to contribute to this podcast series?
I believe in the importance of OTs knowing that they have transferrable skills in a variety of areas, including tech. I'm passionate about helping other therapists transition into tech-related roles and supporting career transitions of rehab professionals into non-clinical areas.
Please describe the Uncommon OT work that you do, the setting in which you work, the population you serve, and the needs that you address.
I'm a product manager for a rehab technology company called Neurolutions, creating a brain-computer interface device for stroke rehabilitation. I work with our development team on product improvements and serve as the voice of the customer, which are individuals with upper extremity deficits after stroke and clinicians that use our product. My practice background is in outpatient neuro-rehab and in-clinic management and I think it's important for therapists to know how technology can support their practice instead of being afraid of it.
What inspired you or drew you to this type of OT work?
I realized I could have a bigger impact working in device development and research than working with individual patients. I love being on the cutting edge of new technology and working on cross-functional teams to get a product to market.
How did you get there? Can you describe your path?
I was working with a patient in private practice who had a stroke in his mid-40s. He was a game programmer back background and motivated by technology. He and his wife found out about the Neofect Smart Glove and got one to trial during our therapy time together. I had feedback about the product and started giving my unsolicited advice. I worked with the company for about a year developing my role and eventually moved to the Bay Area to take on the position of Clinical Manager which was the first therapist in the US working for the company.
Please describe a typical day or OT session in your uncommon setting? What OT skills do you utilize?
I am working on a few different projects right now that requires me to have knowledge of the patient journey through rehabilitation. I'm working on a digital health project with a sister company of Neurolutions. I use a lot of organizational and project management skills, my background working in teams, knowledge of the patient journey, and roadblocks encountered in the hospital and rehabilitation journey.
How do you continue to learn to stay on top of things within your role?
I am a part of interdisciplinary organizations such as ACRM and I'm completing a nanodegree in Product Management through Udacity - I've had to branch into technical knowledge and education along with trying to keep up my practice skills and education for my licensure.
Can you share a little bit about salary and compensation in this setting? How do OT or the services you provide get funded?
Start-up salary is much different than clinic salary with much more opportunity for upward mobility. I also have stock options that are different than typical OT compensation packages. I don't provide "OT" as such - the company is funded through research grants and venture capital.
Any career advice for our followers and listeners on how to get started on this path?
Use technology in your practice and get a sense of what’s out there if you have an interest in a tech-related role. There are a lot of digital health and medical device companies that need people that understand the lived experience of their target market (their patient population). Start paying attention to new companies that are coming up by following news through Rock Health and others. Create a LinkedIn profile and START NETWORKING if you haven't already. These jobs are much more about who you know. Start with informational interviews with people in the field of your interest area.
What’s a common myth or misconception about your job/role you’d like to call out or demystify?
That therapists don't have transferrable skills or the ability to contribute to the tech world
How do we find you, follow you, be in touch with you, and promote your unique work?
Join the Clinician Transition on LinkedIn or the Therapist to Tech Facebook Group - my consulting company is Beyond the Clinic (https://www.beyondtheclinicco.com/) where I provide startups with input on their products and how to break into the therapy market as well as provide workshops for therapists interested in tech career transitions. I also co-founded the Rehab Tech Summit which brings therapists and industry and technology developers together for mutual education and collaboration. Our 2022 Summit will take place in late February and early March - https://rehabtechsummit.com/ - sign up to get on our waitlist for information about tickets and speakers.
RESOURCES:
Rehab Tech Summit
Beyond The Clinic
https://www.beyondtheclinicco.com/
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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