SOMEONE ELSE’S SHOES

How Dr. Ali Lannom’s idea for a capstone project set the stage for her career

At Huntington University for her graduate studies, Lannom found a home where she could focus on orthopedics and hand therapy, publish research in industry journals and integrate her faith into her practice. In spring 2020, as part of her doctoral capstone project, Lannom created a website for limb loss awareness called Living in Motion. The project raised funds to provide prosthetic devices for upper and lower extremities.

Another component of the project was an online challenge that Lannom dubbed Someone Else’s Shoes. Launched in time for Limb Loss Awareness Month and Occupational Therapy Month, the April challenge included three steps:

1. Take a video of yourself tying your shoes using only one hand

2. Post it to social media

3. Challenge three friends to try it next

As those who participated soon learned, Someone Else’s Shoes highlighted the everyday adaptations individuals with limb loss make to complete routine tasks. The challenge reached NFL players from the Denver Broncos and Tennessee Titans, who posted their own videos. The National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT) and the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) shared the challenge on their social media as well.

Along the way, Lannom was learning directly from prosthetists about the details of upper and lower extremity prosthetics and how therapists and occupational therapy could help fill existing gaps in the patient experience, advocate for patients and raise community awareness.

With a successful doctoral capstone project in the books, Lannom graduated from HU in August 2020. But her impact as an occupational therapist was only beginning.

Lannom already had three professional certifications when she graduated, an asset that put her ahead of the average entry-level occupational therapist. She worked in a skilled nursing facility immediately after graduation while she searched for outpatient therapy openings.

Eventually, she received a contract to conduct an evaluation for STAR Physical Therapy. After completing that contract, she came to them with a proposal: bring her on as an outpatient occupational therapist and let her build a prosthetic rehab program. For a young grad in the middle of a pandemic, it was a daring ask, but one that paid off in a big way.

“They let me do it!” she said.

She began with one clinic. Today, her program has expanded to 16 centers that she oversees. Lannom has trained 30 clinicians in prosthetic rehab and consulted or collaborated with physicians, surgeons, therapists and a medical device company.

What began as a grad student’s doctoral capstone project to learn more about prosthetic rehabilitation and then a singular contract at one outpatient facility has turned into a launch pad for so much more. In addition to her clinical work, Lannom has begun guest lecturing in OT programs.

Her own experience with HU’s OTD program and its push to pursue certifications was a significant factor in Lannom’s start as an occupational therapist, pushing her forward to do big things.

“Choosing Huntington was the best decision I ever made. I cannot say enough great things about the University, the faculty, my whole entire experience.”

In fact, her resume at graduation was so impressive that at least one company thought she must be lying!

What’s next? With so much happening in the first two years after graduation, Lannom is focusing on gaining experience before taking on the next challenge — wherever her shoes may take her.