Faculty180 - Vita and Individual Profile Data Sheet

Heather Thomas, Ph.D., OTR/L, DipACLM

Fall 1980 - Fall 2120

Professor I

[email protected]

Current Position

Position: Program Director, Doctor of Occupational Therapy - CA
Position: OTD CA Core Faculty

Biography

Dr. Heather Thomas is a professor at Southern California University in the Doctor of Occupational Therapy program. Prior to this appointment, she was the founding Program Director of an OTD program in Oregon. She has been working in occupational therapy education for over 18 years. She has presented at international, national, and state conferences, and was involved in providing OT services in Haiti after the devastating earthquake in 2010. She has served in a variety of leadership positions within the California state OT association, Los Angeles OT Leadership Forum, Los Angeles City Council, and the American Occupational Therapy Association. She currently serves as a Regional Director for the Occupational Therapy Association of Oregon and on the Board of Directors for Rebuilding Together. She is the author of the top selling activity analysis textbook “Occupation-Based Activity Analysis” which is used across the world.  Her practice background includes working in acute rehabilitation and acute settings, with those who have sustained traumatic and progressive neurological disorders.

Degrees

2011

Ph.D., Health Care Management, Touro University International, Cypress, California, United StatesDissertation: The Influence of Personal and Physical Contexts on Occupational Therapists’ Intervention Choices for Addressing Contractures

Professional Licensures (Healthcare)

OT, California, United States, 3610, Active, 2004, November 2024

OT, Oregon, United States, 1029258, Active, 2021, May 2023

Work Experience

2020 - 2022

Program Director, Western University of Health Sciences, Lebanon, Oregon, United States

2020 - 2020

Professor, University of St. Augustine, San Marcos, California, United States

2017 - 2020

Professor & Curriculum Coordinator, West Coast University, Los Angeles, California, United States

2016 - 2017

Program Director, American Career College, Anaheim, California, United States

2013 - 2016

Associate Professor/Curriculum Development Coordinator, West Coast University, Los Angeles, California, United States

2009 - 2020

Occupational Therapist, Casa Colina Centers for Rehabilitation, Pomona, California, United States

2007 - 2008

Director of Occupational Therapy, Casa Colina Centers for Rehabilitation, Pomona, California, United States

2004 - 2013

Assistant & Associate Professor, Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, California, United States

2000 - 2001

Program Director, Assistive Technology Center, Casa Colina Centers for Rehabilitation, Pomona, California, United States

1998 - 2000

Occupational Therapist, Casa Colina Centers for Rehabilitation, Pomona, California, United States

Scholarly Contributions and Creative Productions

Book

Completed/Published

Thomas, Heather. 2023. Occupational and Activity Analysis, 3rd Edition. Thorofare, NJ: Slack.
Thomas, Heather. 2022. Occupational and Activity Analysis 3rd Edition. Thorofare, NJ: SLACK, Inc.
Thomas, Heather. 2015. Occupation-Based Activity Analysis. Thorofare, NJ: SLACK, Inc.
Thomas, Heather. 2011. Occupation-Based Activity Analysis. Thorofare, NJ: SLACK Incorporated.

Chapter

Completed/Published

Thomas, Heather. 2019. “Working with the Occupational Therapy Assistant.” In The Occupational Therapy Manager. Bethesda, MD: AOTA press.
———. 2020. “Using the Occupational Therapy Practice Framework in Mental Health.” In Psychosocial Occupational Therapy. New York, NY: Elsevier.

Journal Article

Completed/Published

Thomas, Heather, and Manisha Sheth. 2019. “Managing Sleep Deprivation in Older Adults: A Role for Occupational Therapy.” OT Practice March:CE1–9.
Thomas, Heather. 2016. “Sexual Function after Stroke: A Case Report on Rehabilitation Intervention with a Geriatric Survivor.” Topics in Geriatric Rehabilitation 32:204–9.
Thomas, Heather, and Heather Javaherian. 2008. “OT Education SIS and the AOTA Centennial Vision.” AOTA Education Special Interest Section 1:3.
Thomas, Heather. 2007. “How Can You Contribute to Future Clients’ Lives?” OTAC Newsletter 32:2.
Thomas, Heather, and Rondalyn Whitney. 2007. “Staying Current with Your Practice in the Fast Current of Changing Practice: CBOT, OTAC, NBCOT and PDU’s.” OTAC Newsletter 32:2.

Poster Presentation

Completed/Published

Thomas, Heather. 2022. “Preventing Burnout and Cultivating Leadership Using the OT Practice Framework.” World Federation of Occupational Therapists Congress. September.

Presentation

Completed/Published

Thomas, Heather, and Brianne Salvati. 2023. “Occupational Therapy and Lifestyle Medicine: A Perfect Fit for Health Promotion.” Occupational Therapy Association of Oregon Annual Conference. October.
Thomas, Heather. 2022. “Use of the OT Practice Framework and the WFOT Occupational Narratives Project to Teach Occupational Analysis .” World Federation of Occupational Therapists Congress.
Thomas, Heather. 2022. “Use of the OT Practice Framework and the WFOT Occupational Narratives Project to Teach Occupational Analysis .” World Federation of Occupational Therapists Congress. Autumn.
Thomas, Heather. 2022. “Activity and Occupational Analysis Using the OTPF-4.” AESIS AOTA Workshop.
Thomas, Heather. 2021. “Using the New OT Practice Framework to Broaden and Re-Ignite Fire Into Your Practice.” Occupational Therapy Association of Oregon Annual Conference. October.
Thomas, Heather, Kathleen Bianco, Cathy Hickey, Harsha Deoghare, and Leslie Zarrinkhameh. 2021. “Hanging by a Thread During Covid-19 Pandemic- Best Practices to Mitigate Frailty for At-Risk Community Dwelling Elderly.” American Congress of Rehabilitative Medicine Annual Conference. September.
Thomas, Heather, Stephanie Kokesh, and Jenna Mele. 2021. “Preventing Burnout and Cultivating Leadership Using the OT Practice Framework.” American Occupational Therapy Association Annual Conference. April.
Thomas, Heather. 2020. “The 4th Edition of the OT Practice Framework.” Occupational Therapy Association of California Annual Conference. October.
Thomas, Heather, Stephanie Kokesh, and Jenna Mele. 2020. “Preventing Burnout and Cultivating Leadership Using the OT Practice Framework .” Western Regional Occupational Therapy Spring Symposium. March.
Thomas, Heather. 2019. “Using the OT Practice Framework to Facilitate Everyday Leadership.” Occupational Therapy Association of California Annual Conference. October.

Grants

Completed

AAA Carfit Grant, Funded by AAA (January 2, 2018) ($500.00), Completed, Fall 2016, PI Heather Thomas

California Foundation of Occupational Therapy Research Award, Funded by California Foundation of Occupational Therapy (October 4, 2022) ($500.00), Completed, Fall 2010, PI Heather Thomas

Withdrawn

Establishment of Protocols for Incorporation of Lifestyle Medicine into Occupational Therapy Fieldwork and Capstone Projects, Funded by Ardmore Institute (October 11, 2022) ($99,839.00), Withdrawn, Fall 2022, PI Heather Thomas

Honors and Awards

Fall 2022 - Ongoing

Teacher of the Year, 2018, West Coast University

AOTA Service Commendation, 2017, American Occupational Therapy Association

Award of Excellence, 2016, Occupational Therapy Association of California

Outstanding Service Award, 2015, West Coast University

Professional Membership

Fall 2021 - Ongoing

Occupational Therapy Association of Oregon, September 2021

Summer 1996 - Ongoing

American Occupational Therapy Association, December 1996

Fall 1998 - Fall 2020

Occupational Therapy Association of California , October 1998, October 2020

Fall 2007 - Ongoing

World Federation of Occupational Therapists, February 2007