OT Potential Podcast | Occupational Therapy CEUs

Latest Episodes:

#146 Prenatal Therapy with Marissa Ruhl Jul 17, 2026

Show notes

Only in this past year did it come on my radar that some therapy clinics are offering prenatal therapy. While I can personally relate to the desire to have a therapist guide you through such a complex stage of health, I thought that because it isn't offered widely, the evidence base would probably be weak.

I couldn't have been more wrong. The evidence for prenatal prevention therapy is robust for improving:

Pelvic health. Pelvic floor muscle training during pregnancy reduces urinary incontinence by 28% and cuts the risk of severe perineal tears in half (Zhang et al., 2024).

Pregnancy outcomes. Prenatal exercise programs lower the risk of gestational diabetes by 25%, hypertensive disorders by 33%, and cesarean delivery by 14% (Xiang et al., 2026).

Mental health. Mind-body interventions like yoga, mindfulness, and cognitive behavioral therapy significantly reduce prenatal anxiety, depression, and stress — while also improving pain management and self-efficacy (Miao et al., 2026).

Maternal role and quality of life. OT-specific prenatal interventions improve maternal quality of life, emotional regulation, and coping — with benefits that persist into the postpartum period (Karakus & Akyurek, 2026).

Despite this evidence, prenatal therapy remains vastly underutilized. The gap between what the research supports and what is actually available to pregnant individuals represents one of the biggest opportunities in our profession right now.

In this course, we'll welcome Marissa Ruhl from Thrive OT, who is paving the way in offering these services and will share what she has learned about helping to build a thriving practice around this massive need.

See full course details here:
https://otpotential.com/continuing-education/course/prenatal-therapy

See all OT CEU courses here:
https://otpotential.com/ceu-podcast-courses
Check our our live webinar schedule here:
https://otpotential.com/live-ot-ceu-webinars
Support the show by using the OTPOTENTIAL Medbridge Code:
https://otpotential.com/blog/promo-code-for-medbridge
Try 2 free OT Potential courses here:
https://otpotential.com/free-ot-ceus

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#145 What is Therapy & How Do We Measure It? with Megan Cornish Jul 03, 2026

Show notes

The rapid rise of AI chat presenting as therapists has spurred a reaction to differentiate what AI can do versus the work of a licensed therapist.

This is causing many people to look more closely at the question:

What Is Therapy?

In today’s discussion, we’ll both look back at how therapy has been understood historically and look forward to cutting-edge research like “interpersonal neural synchrony,” which is being studied across therapy professions and perhaps paving the way for a unified definition of therapy and its biological mechanisms. Understanding therapy in a neurobiological way will also help us understand why therapy is so often measured by triangulating multiple outcome measures.

We are joined in the course by Megan Cornish, LICSW, and we hope it will inspire you to consider the remarkable power of therapeutic relationships (that we are just at the beginning of understanding.)

See full course details here:
https://otpotential.com/continuing-education/course/what-is-therapy-how-do-we-measure-it

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#144 Therapy and Value-based Care Models with Dana Strauss Jun 26, 2026

Show notes

It’s hard to overstate how important it is for OTs and PTs to understand the new value-based care models.

But, let’s be honest—they are an overwhelming and confusing alphabet soup (TEAM, LEAD, GUIDE, ACO REACH), and that’s just the acronyms.

For OTs and PTs, understanding these models will be the difference between being embedded in the healthcare team of the future—where we deliver highly valued care—and falling into obscurity while our patients receive sub-par care.
Luckily, we have a master at demystifying the complex, Dana Strauss, back on the podcast. You’ll learn:

-How to analyze new models
-How to understand your potential role in them
-How to move your career and your organization forward

I know therapists are so busy on the ground, but we can’t afford to miss this one.

See full course details here:
https://otpotential.com/continuing-education/course/therapy-and-value-based-care-models
See all OT CEU courses here:
https://otpotential.com/ceu-podcast-courses
Check our our live webinar schedule here:
https://otpotential.com/live-ot-ceu-webinars
Support the show by using the OTPOTENTIAL Medbridge Code:
https://otpotential.com/blog/promo-code-for-medbridge
Try 2 free OT Potential courses here:
https://otpotential.com/free-ot-ceus

Support the show

#143 Home Health Therapy Documentation with Rohit Shetty Jun 19, 2026

Show notes

We all know that documentation is a heavy burden for therapists. But home health therapists arguably face one of the heaviest loads, with mandated OASIS reporting layered on top of standard clinical documentation — a dual requirement unique to this setting.

They also face challenges that clinic-based therapists rarely encounter: coordinating care across disciplines — physicians, nurses, and other therapists — often without shared documentation systems, as well as navigating privacy considerations and internet instability when documenting in patients’ homes.

But, as we’ve already discussed around outpatient EHRs, there are changes on the horizon. In this discussion, we’ll zoom in on what’s becoming possible in this complex environment, from clinical decision support to practical automation. We’ll be joined by Rohit Shetty of AutoMynd — Rohit is excellent at explaining exactly what’s possible, while staying grounded in reality.

See full course details here:
https://otpotential.com/ceu-podcast-courses/home-health-therapy-documentation

Try 2 free OT Potential courses here:
https://otpotential.com/free-ot-ceus

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#142 The Vagus Nerve and Stroke with Sarah Blair Jun 12, 2026

Show notes

It feels like in every practice area, the importance of the vagus nerve is being talked about.

But nowhere is it being researched as much as vagal nerve stimulation post-stroke. And the initial results are promising — as long as it is paired with rehabilitation. The stimulation sets the body up for new motor learning, but then the rehab actually creates the change.

In this beginner's course, I'm excited to talk to Sarah Blair, OTR/L from Vivistim about what she has learned about this relatively new intervention and what generalist OTs need to know about this option.

See full course details here:
https://otpotential.com/ceu-podcast-courses/the-vagus-nerve-and-stroke

Try 2 free OT Potential courses here:
https://otpotential.com/free-ot-ceus

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#141 Therapy Credentialing and Billing 101 with Kara Welke May 22, 2026

Show notes

In talking to therapy start-ups this year, I've heard a common stumbling block: Credentialing.

And, honestly, I was shocked when I dug into the space. It feels like the seemingly boring task of getting credentialed with insurance has turned into what honestly feels like a world of sharks. It seems like there are 3 trends at play:

This is truly a bureaucratic headache: You do need to buckle up for some super confusing portals to get credentialed.

Credentialing services are all too happy to take your money: They take your personal information because of this barrier-but because the process itself is murky, they often over-promise and under-deliver, without clarity into what is happening.

Big companies like Grow Therapy want to present this task as too difficult for an average therapist, so you join their platform (where they do the credentialing for you, but own your contract).

In today's episode, we want you to feel empowered to understand credentialing and billing with insurance. We'll help you understand this complex system and how you can navigate it.

Honestly, every therapist who works in insurance reimbursement should understand this process (because if you don't do it yourself, that means someone is probably doing it on your behalf). Our goal is for you to leave with a checklist of what to do-and the confidence to do it!

See full course details here:
https://otpotential.com/ceu-podcast-courses/therapy-credentialing-and-billing-101

Try 2 free OT Potential courses here:
https://otpotential.com/free-ot-ceus

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#140 Suicide Prevention for OT, PT and SLP with Christine Weible-Cruz May 15, 2026

Show notes

In the United States, approximately 49,000 people die by suicide each year. And, unfortunately, the rate of suicide has increased substantially since 2000, up about 30%.

Suicide remains among the 10 leading causes of death among persons aged 10-64 years and is the second leading cause of death among those aged 10-14 and 25-34.

While these trends are multifactorial, they are particularly distressing because evidence-based approaches to screening and intervention are better established than ever.

Yet confidence and training in these approaches remain too low — even among behavioral health workers. OTs, PTs, and SLPs are uniquely positioned to recognize warning signs through repeated, relationship-based care, but most receive little formal training in suicide prevention.

This course seeks to address that gap. We'll cover the basics of:

What to watch for
Evidence based Screening
Evidence based intervention
And, the role of the team.

We'll anchor our discussion in one of the most comprehensive evidence-based frameworks available: the VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guideline for Assessment and Management of Patients at Risk for Suicide (2024). And we'll be joined by Christine Weible-Cruz, LCSW, to get practical on what these guidelines look like in frontline care.

See full course details here:
https://otpotential.com/ceu-podcast-courses/suicide-prevention-for-ot-pt-and-slp

Try 2 free OT Potential courses here:
https://otpotential.com/free-ot-ceus

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#139 Healthcare, Therapy, and the Senate with Dan Osborn May 08, 2026

Show notes

Fixing healthcare is simple: More people need preventative, conservative care earlier.

But getting to this fix is a massively complex web of structural policy choices. The reality is that our modern healthcare system often misaligns incentives, rewarding the management of chronic sickness over the investment in wellness. We've seen a shift toward market consolidation, where vertically integrated monopolies-both in insurance and hospital systems-drive up prices while limiting choice.

It's this playbook-which includes a lack of site-neutrality, high specialist payments, and insufficient transparency-that has allowed consolidated systems to post record revenues, even as:

Medicaid is cut
Insurance premiums are up
Rural hospitals close
Frontline workers experience burnout and higher suicide rates.
The US pays the most in the world for healthcare, without the leading outcomes to show for it.

As therapy providers, we have watched as our common-sense bills collect dust. Our care is denied, our expenses are skyrocketing, and our reimbursement is stagnant because Medicare budgets are squeezed and commercial rates are failing to close the gap. We're fighting red tape to provide simple telehealth, while "AI Therapist" expands with a fraction of our professional oversight.

That's why I wanted to have U.S. Senate Candidate Dan Osborn on the podcast. I wanted to talk about therapy in the Senate. Why aren't we making true progress? How do we move our bills forward? And what does it take to tackle these structural failures

See full course details here:
https://otpotential.com/ceu-podcast-courses/healthcare-therapy-and-the-senate

See our blog post "SEO for Therapists" here:
https://otpotential.com/blog/seo-for-therapists-guide

Try 2 free OT Potential courses here:
https://otpotential.com/free-ot-ceus

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#138 SEO for Therapists with Saroosh Khan May 01, 2026

Show notes

SEO has long been the absolute best way to maintain a consistent therapy client caseload for outpatient therapists. But, for therapists in all settings really, understanding and optimizing your digital real estate is often a secret sauce for career growth.

In today's course, we want to help you:

Recognize how important your digital real estate is to your practice.
Optimize your presence with the right keywords.
Understand the technical details needed for effective local SEO.
Get the leads or contacts you actually want!

This task has gone from important to urgent with the onslaught of vertical integration happening in therapy in 2026. Platforms like GrowTherapy, Amazon, Headway, and Talkspace want to own your digital real estate and make you reliant on them. We want to teach you how to own your own professional identity-and give yourself professional flexibility whether you temporarily use a service like this or not.

Joining us is Saroosh Kahn, CTO of Allia. I met Saroosh over a shared sense of helping keep therapists independent, and I can't wait for him to help us navigate this.

See full course details here:
https://otpotential.com/ceu-podcast-courses/seo-for-therapists

See our blog post "SEO for Therapists" here:
https://otpotential.com/blog/seo-for-therapists-guide

Try 2 free OT Potential courses here:
https://otpotential.com/free-ot-ceus

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#137 OT in Primary Care with Ashley Halle Apr 24, 2026

Show notes

For years, "Occupational Therapy in Primary Care" has felt like a professional aspiration-a "gold standard" we discussed in classrooms but rarely saw in job postings. Today, that reality is shifting. Following the 2020 statutory mandates in Norway and Sweden that solidified OT as a required primary care service, the global tide is turning.

In the United States, we are moving past the era of mere "co-location" toward true interprofessional integration. Driven by the rise of Alternative Payment Models (APMs) and the 2026 Medicare updates to Advanced Primary Care Management, the door is finally opening for OTs to lead in chronic disease management, mental health, and aging-in-place.

On today's episode, we sit down with Dr. Ashley Halle, a leading voice in this movement and co-author of the foundational AJOT research on the topic, to discuss how clinicians can finally step out of the "hypothetical" and onto the primary care team.

See full course details here:
https://otpotential.com/ceu-podcast-courses/ot-in-primary-care

Try 2 free OT Potential courses here:
https://otpotential.com/free-ot-ceus

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