David Merlo, MS, COTA/L, CPRP, ROH: OTP in a Peer-Operated Mental Health Agency
In this post, we will learn from David Merlo, MS, COTA/L, CPRP, ROH. He is an OTP and is managing director of Restoration Society, Inc, a peer-operated community mental health agency Buffalo, NY founded upon the recovery vision that all individuals can lead active lives filled with hope and satisfaction and make valuable contributions to our community. For 8-years prior he was founding director of the Occupational Therapy Assistant Program at Bryant and Stratton College in Rochester, NY. Prior to that he was professor and academic fieldwork coordinator for over 18 years at Erie Community College in Buffalo, NY. Trained through Boston University Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation, David is a Certified Psychiatric Rehabilitation Practitioner (CPRP) in addition to being a licensed COTA. He completed graduate studies in assistive and rehabilitation technology at University at Buffalo OT Department and Center for Assistive Technology (CAT). He earned an MS degree at Buffalo State College, focusing on adult education with emphasis on technology and supporting students with disabilities. David has presented at numerous conferences and co-authored articles on psychiatric rehabilitation, mental health recovery, assistive technology, and the role of occupational therapy assistants in clinical and community practice. He currently services on the board of Haiti Rehabilitation Foundation, an organization that supports the first and only school in Haiti with four-year degree programs in both OT and PT. He serves in a leadership capacity with the Consortium of Psychiatric Rehabilitation Educators, an interprofessional community of practice. He is past director of AOTA Board of Directors, and past representative of the AOTA Representative Assembly. He has served in numerous leadership and volunteer capacities within New York State Occupational Therapy Association.
Q & A with Dave:
Please tell us a little about yourself and some of your favorite occupations:
I recently retired from academia to take on a position in community mental health practice. Favorite leisure occupations: Patio and indoor gardening, listening to jazz, traveling, and watching independent, international, and documentary films.
What motivated you to contribute to this podcast series?
I was invited by fellow members of the NY Mental Health Task Force
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 recently retired as founding director of an OTA academic program to assume a director position at a Restoration Society, Inc, a community-based mental health recovery organization in Buffalo, NY (www.RSIWNY.org). I previously served on their board of directors for nearly 30 years and was recently invited to join their administration. The agency is peer-operated (majority of staff, administration, and board are people who identify as recovering from mental illness or addictions). The agency addresses non-clinical recovery needs, and social determinants of health among people with severe mental illness. We operate through a mental health recovery model lens, focusing on building a person’s strengths, talents, coping abilities, resources, and inherent values to support their success, satisfaction, and wellbeing. The agency addresses the "4 dimensions of recovery" as defined by SAMHSA: HEALTH (symptom/wellness self-management and making healthy choices that support physical and emotional well-being), HOME (having a stable and safe place to live), PURPOSE (meaningful daily activities, such as a job, school volunteerism, family caretaking, or creative endeavors, and independence/income/resources to participate in society), and COMMUNITY (having relationships and social networks that provide support, friendship, love, and hope).
What inspired you or drew you to this type of OT work?
A prior education in horticulture (I was passionate about gardening, landscape design, and our human interactions with our environments) led me to OT. I was intrigued by our local state psychiatric center, discovering that the grounds of the institution were designed by famous landscape architect Fredrick Law Olmsted (he designed Central Park in NYC). His landscape design of the psychiatric center was built around engaging patients in purposeful and meaningful occupations. Orchards, gardens, vineyards were all intended to be "therapeutic" (at least in his original vision). My volunteer work there (described below) led to my discovery of OT.
How did you get there? Can you describe your path?
I discovered OT over 37 years ago volunteering at Buffalo Psychiatric Center. I had a degree in horticulture so I used that background to engage inpatients in operating a greenhouse and garden on the hospital grounds. While there, I stumbled on OT and recognized my calling. My first job out of OTA school was at a "Clubhouse Model" community mental health agency. The Clubhouse Model is rooted in engage people meaningful roles, occupations, and contexts as a way to focus on personal recovery. I was later included in a training grant to become trained in a new model "Psychiatric Rehabilitation" through Boston University Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation. As a trained trainer of psych rehab, I realized an interest and joy in teaching. For 27 tears I taught (and eventually directed) OTA programs. I am thrilled to now return to practice; actually returning to the very agency where I began my career in OT (Restoration Society, Inc.)!
Please describe a typical day or OT session at your uncommon setting? What OT skills do you utilize?
As an administrator, I oversee operations, program development, employee training and support, quality assurance, and strategic planning. My focus is on supporting our employees and programs in maintaining fidelity with our mission, values, and vision. I conduct and participate in meetings, conduct staff training, participate in writing program proposals. I am still new (only about a month in).
Can you talk about some recent highs (successes) and lows (challenges) of your current role?
RECENT HIGH: Any and all situations involving talking to our employees and clients (we call them customers) about hope, possibility, empowerment, and wellbeing. A recent conversation with an OT Level II student stands out. She shared with me her interaction with a customer. As we often do, she expressed "Thank God its Friday" to the customer. The customer responded by saying "I hate weekends". Asked why, the customer stated that she has no access to friends, or a place to engage in socialization and leisure over the weekend. This OT student suddenly realized how poverty, stigma, inaccessibility, and "social determinants of health" impact quality and access to meaningful human occupation. What a profound realization for this student (and an impactful reminder for me)! This was a huge learning success for this OT student that she will never forget. No lecture could have made such impact. RECENT LOW: Staff turnover in non-profit organizations is a serious issue. Salaries are low and we compete with Aldi's, Home Depot, DoorDash, etc. We operate primarily on funding from our state office of mental health, state vocational rehabilitation agency, HUD, and other government agencies. We cannot afford to employ OTs or even OTAs. We would if we could! We are grateful that we can afford my position and our COO is an OTA. And we are blessed to have an amazing OTR on our board of directors (and hopefully one more OTR joining our board soon)!
How do you continue to learn in order to stay on top of things within your role?
I continually attend AOTA offerings. So many SIS forums and other meetings are free with membership. I attend AOTA and NYSOTA conferences, as well as interprofessional conferences offered by Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association (PRA) and New York Association of Psychiatric Rehabilitation Services (NYAPRS). And I am now engaging in numerous workshops offered by our state office of mental health, SAMHSA, and other entities. I am very involved in advocacy, and I participate on committees that focus supporting OTAs in practice and education. I also engage in scholarship by presenting at conferences and co-authoring articles.
Can you share a little bit about salary and compensation in this setting? How do OT or the services you provide get funded?
Because administrative positions are often agreed upon through negotiation, it would not be appropriate to disclose my specific salary. I will say, however, that a position like mine is within the salary requirements of OTs with several years of experience. Funding is through New York State Office of Mental Health, ACCESS-VR (our state vocational rehabilitation agency), HUD, Medicaid. We are increasingly receiving funding from health insurance companies to address social determinants of health.
Any career advice for our followers and listeners on how to get started on this path?
Network, join boards, volunteer, and show your passion! I attribute my success to these things. A career is more than at job. It is essential to get past the idea of only working for pay. I view networking, board work, and other volunteer activities as part of my socialization and leisure occupations. Those occupations as energizing and inspiring for me. Attending conferences are more fun than vacations. Maybe I'm odd, but I believe that my passion has brought me great joy and success in life.
What’s a common myth or misconception about your job/role you’d like to call out or demystify?
I have never worked a day in my life in an OT clinical setting. Yet, I have "done OT" throughout my entire career. OT is way more than addressing diseases in injuries. OT is prevention, OT is wellness, OT is engagement. I love our AOTA Vision 2025: "As an inclusive profession, occupational therapy maximizes health, well-being, and quality of life for all people, populations, and communities through effective solutions that facilitate participation in everyday living." That statement says nothing about sickness, injury or treatment. It says so much more than that!
How do we find you, follow you, be in touch with you and promote your unique work?
My website (containing my CV and more) is located at http://www.davidmerlo.com/ LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/davidmmerlo
Please list any resources you would like me to include with your Show Notes (courses, articles, assessments, tools, etc.)
http://www.davidmerlo.com/ (my personal website)
https://www.haitirehab.org/ (I'm on the board of Haiti Rehabilitation Foundation) Haiti Rehabilitation Foundation (HRF) is a non-profit, 501c3 organization founded with the mission of educating Haitians in the art and science of Physical and Occupational Therapy.
https://cpr.bu.edu/ Boston University College of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences: Sargent College: Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation. This center has led much of the research and development of the Psychiatric Rehabilitation Model
https://helpinghandsandbeyond.org/ A nonprofit humanitarian organization established and dedicated to educate and promote wellness, by encouraging and stimulating healing and recovery. The organization's primary project is Clinic Du Nazareen which provides general health care services, rehabilitation, community development, and mobile clinics throughout Miragoane, Haiti, and the surrounding villages. My friend Bergson Louis Jacques, OTR, is the director. I've traveled with him several times to Haiti to help with their clinic.
https://rsiwny.org/ Restoration Society, Inc. (where I serve as Managing Director). Restoration Society, Inc. programs are peer empowered rehabilitation communities founded upon the recovery vision that all individuals can lead active lives filled with hope and satisfaction and make valuable contributions to our community
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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