Behind the Scenes Peek: OTs in Pelvic Health Summit 2022

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Transcript

00:00
I am such a geek when it comes to behind the scenes stuff.  Of course, big events peak my interest, but what I want to know is what happened behind the scenes  for it to actually be able to be a thing.  So Kelsey Mathias and I decided to get together and share some of that with you today.  Now, for those of you who don't know Kelsey, she is an amazing OT. She is an amazing friend. She is  one amazing human being.

00:29
that I could not tell you the privilege that I've experienced to be able to co-host this event with her. So today we're gonna go into why we decided to do it, how Kelsey and I met and plans we have for the future for OTs and Pelvic Health 2023. Check it out. New and seasoned OTs are finding their calling in pelvic health. After all, what's more ADL than sex, peeing and poop?

00:59
But here's the question,  what does it take to become a successful,  fulfilled, and thriving OT in Pelvic Health?  How do you go from beginner to seasons and  everything in between?  Those are the questions, and this podcast will give you the answers.  We are inspired OTs.  We are out of the box OTs.  We are Pelvic Health OTs.  I'm your host, Lindsay Vestal, and welcome to the OTs in Pelvic Health podcast.

01:33
Kelsey,  I am  so happy that you have joined me to talk about  what I'm calling is behind the scenes of our summit.  I think people are innately interested in kind of like what happens behind the curtain in events like this.  And  when I think about talking about the behind the scenes, my mind goes back all the way to 2018 when you and I first started. This was a seedling of an idea. Can we talk about that?

02:01
I mean, I would absolutely love it. Reflecting back on 2018 and just like we had been talking about OTs and our unique power and just getting so excited. I mean, it's so needed. Like the summit was so needed and we've been thinking about it back since 2018. I clear as day. I was living in Manhattan at the time. And I remember talking to you in Union Square. pulled over into a no name building so I could actually have a conversation where I had an

02:31
a window of opportunity to hear you versus the ambulances going by.  And I was so fired up at this idea of bringing a community together, a community of OTs that support at Pelvic Health  so that we could see what's possible, so that we could inspire each other, so that we could feel like we're constantly challenging ourselves to do best by our clients. And  every time you and I talked, it was so passionate and I always walked away.

02:58
feeling stronger and clearer in my ability to articulate my role as a pelvic floor therapist that all I could dream about after that initial conversation with you was like, when is this gonna happen? So I gotta know what I'm sure everyone is thinking right now is, okay, that happened in 2018. Why are we just doing this now, Kelsey? It's 2022. I mean, add a couple of kids and a few moves and a pandemic in the middle. And here we are.

03:27
2022.  That is exactly right. And I have to say that the idea never left us and it's probably just gotten stronger. So I'm a big believer things happen for a reason. So ah I think it's, I think it's great. Yeah. I feel like the timing is ripe and, and Lindsay hearing just the stories that both you and I have been able to hear and engage in and participate in a fellow OTs in pelvic, the pelvic health sphere.

03:55
Like I know it just fed that hunger and both you and I like, man, we need to share these stories. We need to share these experiences.  We need people to meet these amazing OTs that you and I know and for people to learn from them all in one space. And so like, yes, 2022 it's the year. And you know what's crazy, Kelsey? We have 35 speakers and 19 talks  in these two days. It's so content rich,  like OTs are powerhouses. And I feel like

04:25
as we've developed this lineup, just reflects what Rockstar Leaders OTs are and how we have to share it. I'm so excited for the lineup. And I I could not imagine a better group of speakers. And this is going to be an annual event. We've already committed to that. We already know that. So honestly, how are we going to top this in 2023? I mean, it's going to be hard. And that's where I get.

04:52
I get excited thinking and dreaming and scheming, but it's going to be hard. mean, we really do have an incredible, phenomenal lineup. All right. So I want to get real for a second.  What was your least favorite aspect of planning this whole thing? uh I mean, what you just mentioned is one of them,  the amount of incredible OTs and PTs and like,

05:20
I mean, I even think like future times, like, okay, what about like a certified nurse midwife or a strength coach and like really  narrowing it down when there's so many amazing people,  um, OTs and professionals working in this space, like keeping it simple and not like wanting to throw in a movement practice this time or, know, like that, that was really, really hard for me.  What about you?

05:44
I've  never run a summit or a conference before.  so  there's a, let's be really honest, it was a huge learning curve for me. Everything from, yeah, like what platform to use? Do we use Zoom?  Spoiler alert, we did not. We felt like using a specific platform for a summit ah was advice that I was given from fellow OT colleagues who are running summits. Big shout out to Kara Welke and Raina.

06:09
Olivier, mean,  the research was incredible. The learning curve was incredible. I leaned on my peers and colleagues as much as I could.  But I would say that I kept centered by something you and I agreed on from the beginning, which was that simplicity. ah As most of you know, I moved from Paris to America, not knowing what state I was going to land in, in the middle of planning this.

06:36
As we record this,  I'm still living in temporary housing with no estimated date as to when any of my personal belongings are gonna be arriving from Paris.  And  I think that  so many questions, should we offer CEUs?  Should we have a sponsor?  You know, go big or go home.  And you and I just kept coming back to our intent, which was simplicity.  And my good friend, Karlyn Neek, Karlyn Neek always says to me,

07:05
kindness is clarity.  And  I want it to be really clear  on the intention of this, which was  just providing a beautiful inspirational space for OTs to feel more and more of the ability to step into what we know we are, which is leaders in this field. So yeah, I would say a challenge for me was keeping it simple, even though I'm so thankful that we did, I wanted to go big. I wanted to go bigger so many times.

07:35
I know it was  so hard. I'm glad we have kept it as simple as we have. But yeah, like, I mean, we do both like to go big or go home.  Speaking of which, ah we had both of our partners involved in this. I want to give a big shout out to Larry, your husband, ah who created our agenda.

07:59
without him. I don't know what I would have done. It was gorgeous and beautiful. And he is probably one of the most patient people I've ever met. I mean, I'm a little biased, but I have to agree. He's so genuine and honestly, like, I the formatting, I had no idea how intensive that could be. So I'm super, super grateful. And then can we talk about Doug for a moment? Because like, holy cow, powerhouse, I started following him on Instagram. And Lindsay, he's putting out like,

08:28
really great content. I'm so excited to hear him speak at the summit. Yeah, so Doug just started ah freedom of practice.com, which is his own company supporting OTs who want to start their own private pay practices.  And  he's been my behind the scenes guy since 2014 when I started my company,  helping me with so many logistics. And he definitely stepped up  with helping me with figuring out the hop in platform.

08:53
And then of course I was like, can you please talk at the conference? Like, I really want to hear  what you have to say. And  it's really interesting. The title of this topic is another taboo topic. Can OTs become wealthy? And I love that because already we know a pelvic health conference is diving into taboo topics. And I think wealth and freedom of where you want to practice, who you want to practice with, how you want to practice.

09:17
is another taboo topic. So I'm really proud that he's going to go there  and talk about that in the conference. mean, honestly, that's one of the things like the topics I'm looking forward to the most selfishly because I,  I've really struggled throughout the years with that whole money mindset thing. And like, like as a healthcare provider, as an OT, is it like, is that okay? And like, and I know it is,  and I've gotten better throughout the years, but like, man, what, what a need and like, so excited to hear Doug address it.

09:48
And on the other side of that, we wanted to have someone talk about insurance a little bit, right? So we've got Erica Grinnell-Stevens coming on. She actually runs a hybrid model.  And I thought that was so fascinating because she's going to talk about  taking insurance and not taking insurance and kind of the pluses and minuses of both. Yeah. And, like having done that before, I've like, I'm so excited for other people to hear like things that as business owners and people in practices, maybe helping people make the decisions,  like  having that like,

10:18
cost to benefit analysis, I think is so important. And I'm excited to hear her perspective as well. Oh my goodness. There are so many. I'm looking at the agenda right now. mean, we,  I'm really proud, Kelsey. I'm really proud that we have  several PTs on our agenda.  We've got Rebecca Segraves  talking about her passion, which is acute rehab and basically expanding services in the hospital and in the home after birth, which is so cool.

10:46
We've got Lynn Schulte, who's going to be talking about following our own path and really serving our clients in the way we feel called to. Do we have any other PTs? We have Dawn Sandel-Seedy, which I mean, I've taken her pediatric courses before, so like slightly nerding out because she's so incredible. And in her courses, I kept thinking, oh man, she's so OT because she's addressed to the habits and routines in her talk. So really excited to have her there as well.

11:15
That's right, Dawn. Oh, I'm so excited about that.  So we have the powerhouse occupational therapy assistant. have Wendy Underwood and Shonda Brandon talking about how OTAs and OTs can collaborate more, which I'm like so fired up for that topic. mean, Wendy is a powerhouse. Like I know I keep using that  phrase, but like  with her, I mean, she's a leader for her public or for her rehab company  for continuing education. And so like as an OTA, like I feel so honored.

11:44
for us to hear and learn from her and her perspective. Yeah.  And then we've got two panels. So the idea from the panels is between the two, we've got eight different categories  or areas of specialty.  So on day one, we've got geriatric, pediatric, women's health, tween and teen.  And on day two, we have LGBTQ +, menopause, oncology, and athletes. Those are going to be so much fun.

12:13
I mean, honestly, I love hearing what people working in different practice settings are doing and how they help serve different populations. And I'm so excited to hear what they have to say. I mean, I could go on and on. There's so many other aspects of this conference I want to highlight. I definitely want to give a huge shout out to Krista Cavell-Pearson, who is our keynote. She, like you guys have a tremendous history. She is just, she is an amazing gem of a human being. I mean, I just.

12:42
I mean, she's the one who actually kind of got Lindsay and I talking together in the first place.  So shout out to her for that. But she's so full of compassion.  And she is a leader that exhibits joy that is just  vibrant and contagious.  And I am so excited for us to kind of just capture and catch that joy that she exudes of an OT leader, for sure. Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely.  So

13:10
I mean, there's so many other amazing topics. I could spend another hour talking with you about them, but I want to actually transition to something that was an incredibly important part of us planning. And that is this idea that we are donating 100 % of the proceeds from this conference to the Ukrainian Women's Fund. Kelsey, why did we do this? Why was this an important aspect to this planning? Lindsay, honestly, this is one of my favorite parts of the summit.

13:38
um One of the things that stuck out to me even like back in school, you know, like eight years ago, the OT practice framework so unique from other rehab professionals,  like it says we are we are meant to be advocates. We advocacy is in our blood.  And so you and I both felt like, wow, what a great way to to show like this is truly a conference by OTs. Like there's no better way than to find an area of need where we can

14:07
help empower advocates who are already doing the work.  And so as we were looking,  it felt very timely,  kind of like with current events here in the US, but also in the Ukraine with them being at war. We went and we were looking for ways to help women there and the Ukrainian Women's Fund kind of ticked off all the markers of what we were hoping for, with  equality for women and men and freedom of choice and how they work for strengthening and supporting women both through teaching opportunities, education opportunities.

14:35
giving them equal access to resources, providing them safe places to be in the midst of the war. could go on and on, but when I read that it was literally hitting all the markers.  Yeah.  Yeah. And I have to say that for me, you know, I'm asked a lot about my feelings on private pay. And obviously this is Doug's topic, so I'm not going to step on his toes here too much,  but I'm asked a lot about like, you know, am I just,  am I just serving the wealthy? Right. So when my private practice was open, which just closed this year,

15:02
You know, people said like, if you're not taking insurance, you're really limiting who you can serve. And  my answer is, that we, vote with our pocketbook. And so by, because I wasn't taking insurance, it meant that I could set aside enough time in my schedule to accept pro bono cases,  to accept sliding scale, which every single month I did.  And here is another example that because I'm able to earn a livable wage by the courses that I create to support OTs, I,

15:32
have a budget and I have a certain amount of revenue that once I'm able to have a little wage for my family,  I donate the rest of the money to charity. And so this is an example of sort of me being able to live and breathe by that and to donate  the endless amount of hours that both you and I have put into this conference. And I can justify this without taking away from  anything I'm able to provide for my family and to be able to donate this to something that we so solidly believe in and

16:00
It's an example of, I think, the power of the way you set up your business, and to me, an example of the power of being a private pay practitioner. I mean, I agree 100%. Having that private pay model just leads to, I mean, and I'm working for a cash pay practice now, it leads to capacity and ability to do these things that I know I wouldn't be able to pull off without that. Yeah. Yeah.

16:27
So  I want to just say one more thing to everyone listening. ah Kelsey and I decided to make this a virtual summit ah for a variety of reasons. Number one, there is the simplicity model that we've talked about already.  The fact that you do not have to travel. There are no extra costs associated with renting a car or staying in a hotel. You can be in whatever comfy clothes you want.  I will say that the downside to something like this is that you've got to be meaningful and uh

16:57
intentional  with carving out your schedule. So most days our conference goes from nine to four.  And  if you're like me, you've got a family, you've got other commitments, it's a Saturday and Sunday. So, you know, really being able to set aside this time and be present can be a challenge. It's one of the reasons why I do like in-person events, right? It's just like, no,  there's nothing else I have to multitask. I'm in person, I'm present. So as many upsides there are to having a virtual conference, there are some downsides um to it.

17:27
And so I have to ask Kelsey,  are we thinking this conference will ever be in person down the road?  mean, yeah. Like I would love to just sit in a room  and be, like, there's something about being present with other OTs. I don't know. What do you think when you, when you think about in person,  Yeah. I mean, I, I have to say that since, you know, in 20, 2019, I moved to Paris and  I found myself very quickly missing the spontaneity and

17:55
just the clarity that meeting with other people really brought. uh We moved there right before the pandemic, which,  you know, we pretty much had nine months of lockdown over there to some degree or another. you know, France took it very seriously. And so there were times where I couldn't go for more than a kilometer outside of my house and I had to bring a form justifying my errand.  And I found myself in those times really  imagining and desiring what it would be like to be in a room filled with pelvic health, OTs.

18:24
And so I have to say, now that I'm back in the States, it's only been a month, but that desire is even stronger because now I know it's possible. So  for reasons of simplicity, I'm really happy that we did it virtually this year. I think we learned so much about the process of organizing something like this.  And I am personally up for the challenge, if you are,  of ah in the near future, having an in-person event. I mean,  we've got to do it. Like, I really do think we need to get in person.

18:53
to be able to literally like look one another in the eyes, share a cup of coffee, tea, and just like that presence of people I feel like is so important. So yeah, I think we needed to do it. So if you are listening and you have an opinion as to whether or not you would like the 2023 conference to be in person, send Kelsey or myself an email. All this information will be in the show notes, including a link to where you can find us both on social media. And Kelsey.

19:22
I could not imagine running this conference, planning this conference,  hosting this conference with anyone else. I'm so grateful and it was such an honor ah every step along the way. So thank you for collaborating with me on this. ah I mean, Lindsay, thank you. And I'm sure I'm speaking for other people that like being able to do this like back in 2018 when I got to speak with you, I felt a little bit like I was speaking to an OT celebrity. uh

19:48
And so,  I mean,  years down the road, knowing how kind and gracious and compassionate you are, mean, I feel so, so honored to call you like not just like co-founder of this thing, but friend and like excited to see where this goes in the future. Oh, lady, you took the words out of my mouth.  Thank you so much.  And  check out the show notes for details on tickets for the summit. And Kelsey and I can't wait to see you there.

20:15
Thanks for listening to another episode of OTs and Pelvic Health.  If you haven't already, hop onto Facebook and join my group,  OTs for Pelvic Health, where we have thousands of OTs at all stages  of their pelvic health career journey.  This is such an incredibly supportive community where I go live each and every week. If you love this episode, please take a screenshot of this episode on your phone and post it to IG, Facebook, wherever you post your stuff.

20:42
and be sure to tag me and let me know why you like this episode.  This will help me to create in the future what you want to hear more of.  Thanks again for listening to the OTs and pelvic health podcast.