Angela Provenzano-Tobin, OTD, OTR/L: OT in Kinship Care

In this episode, we will be learning about an occupational therapist who works in kinship care. Angela Provenzano-Tobin, OTR/L, OTD is a recent graduate of The Ohio State University occupational therapy program. She has had her fair share of travels- as she is a Connecticut native and attended Mississippi State University, earning a bachelor’s degree in Educational Psychology with a Spanish minor. She started an online support group for kinship caregivers, Kinship Caregivers Connect, in June of 2020 at the height of the pandemic with the Albert Schweitzer Fellowship. She developed a passion for serving kinship caregivers due to personal and research experiences, seeing an acute need for this often-forgotten population. For Angela’s doctoral capstone project in January, she is partnered with the Ohio Statewide Family Engagement Center, a translational research center, to design and implement trainings for professionals in the school system to promote a better understanding and support of kinship families within this system. Angela’s support group has reached university-wide and state-wide recognition. She was recently awarded the Jane-Case Smith Outstanding Student Award from the Ohio Occupational Therapy Association, as well as the Engaged Scholars Grant, The Scholarship of Excellence Award, The Legacy Award, and the Hite Family Scholarship. Outside of these accolades, Angela finds continual passion and purpose in supporting such a special population and has embraced the idea of being an Uncommon OT!

Q & A with Angela:

Please tell us a little about yourself and a few favorite occupations.

I am originally from Connecticut, earned a bachelor's degree in educational psychology with a Spanish minor at Mississippi State University, and am currently a 3rd-year doctorate student studying OT at The Ohio State University! I graduate in May So far, my passion has been working in mental health. Favorite occupations: Caring for pets (two kittens) Leisure- Writing Poetry, long walks on the beach (cliché I know), former cheerleader as well Education- I have enjoyed all the learning and growing that has come along with being a student. (Many Life Updates since time of interview!)

What motivated you to contribute to this podcast series?

As I approach graduation, I find myself embracing the idea of being an uncommon OT in many ways! I have been inspired by previous podcast guests and am honored to have a platform to share my story as well. I hope it especially speaks to OT students and new grads- that there is often never a better time than now! I also cannot turn down an opportunity to talk about a topic I am passionate about that most people are not aware of- Kinship Families!

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 work with kinship caregivers - that is relatives who are raising children within their extended family, such as grandparents raising grandchildren. I am the founder and leader of Kinship Caregivers Connect, a weekly online support groups for kinship caregivers. Kinship caregivers are a widely underserved population in many ways and experience decreased mental and physical health outcomes, with such a shocking life transition, often with little preparation and support. Many socioeconomic and systemic factors come into play, as kinship families are more likely to fall into a low-income bracket and live in poverty as well. The children taken in by kinship caregivers have often experienced trauma, and have an increased rate of developmental disabilities like ADHD, behavioral challenges, and learning disabilities. The support group meets weekly. We have some meetings dedicated to peer discussion only, and some meetings where I invite speakers from all disciplines to discuss topics related to kinship care. We also have a website where I have compiled many video resources for caregivers. We have recently partnered with a state-funded community agency to sustain and expand the group. My goal for the group is to improve caregiver well-being and also self-efficacy in their role as a caregiver. As an OT student, I am equipped to think outside the box in terms of what is accessible and relevant for caregiver’s everyday life. This ranges from making the website visually accessible, engaging conversation even over Zoom, sending out self-care challenges every week, and bringing in interdisciplinary speakers who have helpful information to offer. In addition to running the support group, I am also in a research lab within the social work department that studies different aspects of kinship care from a systems perspective. My capstone project will be with the Ohio Statewide Family Engagement Center, which is a translational research center that partners with schools throughout the state to provide trainings on family engagement, and my focus will be kinship family engagement. An interdisciplinary approach has been so valuable to me!

What inspired you or drew you to this type of OT work?

I always knew I wanted to go into mental health as an OT. I specifically got interested in kinship care because of my personal experience with it. I watched my grandparents raise my cousin from a young age. It was their absolute pride and joy, but also came with many challenges. I watched as they struggled to complete everyday caregiving tasks as their health declined, but they wanted to continue doing it out of care for my cousin and the purpose they found in it. After they passed away, my parents now are the primary caregivers of my cousin, who is now 17. They went from having triplet girls who are now in college, to a teenage boy. It has been a transition, to say the least. I have had an outside and inside perspective of kinship caregiving, and just have seen the need for support. My parents have come to almost every support group meeting since I started!

How did you get there? Can you describe your path?

In my undergrad career, I serendipitously was introduced to a research lab professor who does research on Grandfamilies. I joined the research lab and learned so much about this population at large as I crunched statistics from national data sets. When I got to OSU for OT school, I knew I wanted to continue to work with this population- someway, somehow. The Albert Schweitzer Fellowship was my opportunity to do start a support group for kinship caregivers. It was a small, one-year grant to start a community project, and I worked closely with Ohio Grandparent Kinship Coalition (OGKC) to get the group started. After I got the fellowship, COVID-19 hit, and I had to adjust the plans for an in-person group and shift it online. I had such strong mentors within the community of kinship caregivers (OGKC) who really helped me to develop and promote the program. After the one-year fellowship was over, I knew I had to keep the group going, as it was such a needed support. I connected with OhioKAN, which is a kinship navigators program funded by the Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services. I signed a contract to partner with them and OFCA (Ohio Family Care Association) to continue to run and expand the group!

Please describe a typical day or OT session at your uncommon setting? What OT skills do you utilize?

Being a student, this is still a part-time job for me. There is a lot of behind-the-scenes work, planning, and organization that is unseen and on my own time. I typically send out weekly emails with information about support group meetings, speakers that week, community resources, and a short self-care challenge. I update the website weekly as well. I contact caregivers who may be interested in joining the group. I reach out and schedule potential speakers about a month ahead of time on topics relevant to kinship care. I also create monthly flyers to promote the group. This all requires strategy, organization, and creativity in brainstorming the best ways to make the support group client-centered and accessible. Support group meetings are now twice a week now, lasting an hour per meeting. During support group meetings, therapeutic use of self is really my bread in butter as a facilitator. I have worked hard to get to know and also gain the trust of kinship caregivers, who are often underserved and even mistreated in other systems. My main goal is to create a safe space where anyone can share. I also facilitate a group message with caregivers who talk on a daily basis, and we all send encouragement to each other. Not having been a caregiver myself, I have to recognize that I cannot truly understand what caregivers are going through, but I can fully step into empathy and solidarity to be a constant support for them. We have truly built a community!

Can you talk about some recent highs (successes) and lows (challenges) of your current role?

A recent success is planning to expand to start another online support group in December! It has been so cool to see what this small idea of mine has grown into. Connecting with caregivers themselves and experiencing what the group has meant to them has been the best part. I have realized it is not necessarily what I do, but the support that caregivers provide to one another, that has made all the difference! Challenges for me are maintaining a work-life balance in juggling being a full-time student, having a research job, and running the support groups. I genuinely love all of these things, so it makes it easier to keep going. Another challenge has been recruiting caregivers from a virtual standpoint. I rely heavily on community connections and referrals to spread the word about the group. Sometimes attendance can be hard because caregivers are already so overburdened and busy.

How do you continue to learn in order to stay on top of things within your role?

I always challenge myself to improve and think outside the box--even if there is not a pressing need to do so. I am learning that in some ways I can be the "jack of all trades," like learning to build a website platform and create engaging fliers. I also sent out a feedback survey to caregivers to see what has worked and areas of improvement for the group. From an academic standpoint, I am still learning so much in school. My capstone project is on the topic and I just wrote a scoping review on community support for kinship caregivers Additionally, working in a research lab that studies outcomes for kinship families from a systemic perspective has really broadened my standpoint.

Can you share a little bit about salary and compensation in this setting?  How do OT or the services you provide get funded?

I am technically a contracted service with a fiscal agent. My goal would be to establish my own non-profit in a couple of years so I have the infrastructure to contract myself. I am currently contracted with OhioKAN, Ohio Kinship and Adoption Navigators program, which is a new statewide initiative for kinship caregivers, and OFCA (Ohio Family Care Association). We have a one-year contract until the end of their fiscal year, (June 2022), with the possibility of resigning for next year and after that. I receive a monthly stipend for running the group. My fiscal agent, OFCA, handles the accounting and legal sides of things and provides mentorship. It has been cool working with two community organizations outside the healthcare system. I have found there is no significant funding for this type of work within the healthcare system.

Any career advice for our followers and listeners on how to get started on this path?

My main piece of advice is it's never too early to follow your passions! Let your passions lead you as much as possible and step through the voices of doubt that may be in your head. However, "outside of the box" your passion may be. I never thought this job would be possible while I am in OT school, but with each opportunity, I kept going- one foot in front of the other, and here I landed. There have been so many times that I felt underqualified or like I didn't know what I was doing, but I continually had amazing mentors to turn to. Getting connected to the right people I think has been one of the biggest factors in the success of the group. I am never afraid to ask for feedback or help from those around me. I also embraced the feeling of being a "fish out of water" as an OT in many situations.

What’s a common myth or misconception about your job/role you’d like to call out or demystify?

A common myth would be that running a support group is only a job for mental health professionals like counselors and social workers. As OTs, we do have training in this area as well, and I think brings the unique aspect of focusing on self-efficacy and everyday skills of caregivers.

How do we find you , follow you, be in touch with you, and promote your unique work?

Website: https://kinshipcaregiversconnect.com/

My email: angela@kinshipcaregiversconnect.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/angela-provenzano-otd-149594149

Twitter: @Kincareconnect

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kinshipcaregiversconnect

Instagram: @kinshipconnections

Capstone project summary: https://youtu.be/8BJB0LJmxuA

Full capstone project presentation: https://ohiofamiliesengage.osu.edu/2022/03/25/webinar-recording-kinship-connections-how-schools-can-partner-with-kinship-families/

OhioKAN: https://ohiokan.jfs.ohio.gov/

Ohio Grandparent Kinship Coalition: https://ohiograndparentkinship.org/

Related article: Taylor, M. F., Marquis, R., Batten, R., & Coall, D. (2016). Understanding the mental health travails of custodial grandparents. Occupational Therapy in Mental Health, 32, 259-280.

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

THANK YOU for LISTENING, FOLLOWING, DOWNLOADING, RATING, REVIEWING & SHARING “The Uncommon OT Series” Podcast with all your OTP friends and colleagues!

Full Episodes and Q & A only available at:

https://www.wholistic-transitions.com/the-uncommon-ot-series

Sign Up NOW for the Transitions OT Email List to Receive the FREE

List of Uncommon OT Practice Settings

https://www.wholistic-transitions.com/transitionsot

For Non-Traditional OT Practice Mentorship w/ Patricia:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeC3vI5OnK3mLrCXACEex-5ReO8uUVPo1EUXIi8FKO-FCfoEg/viewform

Happy Listening Everyone! 

Big OT Love!

All views are mine and guests own.

Be a Patron to support The Uncommon OT Series Podcast project via Patreon.