The OT Service is led by Kate, Adam, Samantha and Lucy who are highly respected occupational therapists in their respective fields and continue to hold clinical caseloads to maintain an in-depth knowledge in their area of practice.
Directors
Kate Sheehan
Director & Occupational Therapist
Kate qualified from Derby School of Occupational Therapy in 1987.
Kate is a well-respected occupational therapist, with over 30 years of experience. She is the former chairperson and treasurer of the Royal College of Occupational Therapists specialist section – Housing (COTSS – H) and represented the Royal College of Occupational Therapists in Europe. Kate chaired the genHOME research project working on the evidence base for housing modifications.
Kate has worked in partnership with Bristol University on the publication of ‘Minor adaptations without delay’, funded by the Housing Corporation and Royal College of Occupational Therapists, co-authored the new 2018 edition of the Wheelchair Housing Design Guide and wrote two chapters of the “Essential Guide for Newly Qualified Occupational Therapists’.
She has presented her work on inclusive design and housing standards at the World Federation of Occupational Therapists in Sydney, Australia, COTEC in Milan and at the RCOTSS-H conference. She has also developed and taught on the first accessible housing course in Croatia and Bosnia.
Kate is a member of the British Association of Occupational Therapists and the Royal College of Occupational Therapists Specialist sections – Independent Practice and Housing as well as being registered with the Health Care Professionals Council. She maintains a high level of professional development and feels the key to providing her clients with an excellent service is maintaining close networks within the commercial, housing and occupational therapy fields.
In her spare time Kate supports the local primary school in maintaining their wild gardens and is a campaigner for excellent education for all.
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Adam Ferry
Graduating in 2007 with an Occupational Therapy BSc, Adam worked in the NHS until he left in 2018 to work full-time in the private sector as a director of The OT Service, although there was a two – year period when these roles overlapped.
Whist in the NHS Adam worked in a range of clinical areas but predominantly emergency care, then neurological rehabilitation as a senior therapist. In the final 3 years of NHS employment Adam managed acute and rehabilitation services across four sites.
Over recent years Adam has continued to develop a clinical reputation within neurological rehabilitation and falls, holding a complex caseload supporting case managers and their clients. However, it is within commercial consultancy that Adam has developed his national and international profile, being responsible for development of The OT Show CPD programme as well as expert consultancy for high profile companies such as AKW, Closomat, Invacare, Mangar International and Abacus Healthcare.
Adam is a member of the British Association of Occupational Therapists and the College of Occupational Therapists Specialist sections – Independent Practice and Older People as well as being registered with the Health Care Professionals Council (OT52788)
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Samantha Shann
Director
Samantha qualified in 1992 as an occupational therapist and gained her masters in 2011. She also holds a post-graduate teaching qualification in academic practice. Samantha is a member of the Royal College of Occupational Therapists (RCOT) and a member of RCOT’s specialist sections – Older Persons and Mental Health as well as being registered with the Health and Care Professionals Council.
Samantha’s clinical speciality centres on those with mental health concerns, while her wider role with The OT Service involves supervision and mentoring as well as consultancy to businesses focusing on training and occupational therapy expertise.
Samantha is the president of the World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT). She is committed to promoting and advocating for the profession by supporting the development of professional standards and new educational programmes.
Until 2016 Samantha held the position of senior lecturer at Northumbria University overseeing aspects of the BSc (Hons) and MSc (pre-registration) occupational therapy programmes, with a particular interest in supporting students and graduates in developing new services. Samantha remains a regular guest lecturer at various national and international universities.
Through her work with the WFOT Samantha represents the occupational therapy profession at high-level World Health Organisation (WHO) meetings and contributes to specific WHO projects for example the GATE (Global Assistive Technology) initiative, Rehabilitation 2030 and Mental Health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP). Samantha is also a founding board member for the International Society for Wheelchair Professionals (ISWP).
Samantha is a sought after speaker at national and international conferences sharing her expertise on promoting professional identity and establishing occupational therapy services.
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Lucy Leonard
Occupational Therapist
Qualified to master’s level, Lucy graduated from Sheffield Hallam University in 1999 and worked in acute mental health as well as rehabilitation for people with enduring mental health problems. She then went on to work in a community setting where she developed extensive skills in equipment and adaptations for adults with complex, long-term and neurological conditions.
In recent years, Lucy has worked as a specialist occupational therapist and having owned her own business providing expert occupational therapy she is now a director at The OT Service. Lucy has also worked as a consultant occupational therapist for several UK-based companies to advise on their new products as well as working with the Disabled Living Foundation Charity to develop their website.
Lucy has delivered lectures on integrated working and has spoken to academics at Sheffield Hallam on integration to support their new ‘integrated curriculum’ and was subsequently invited as the key-note speaker at the Inter-professional Education Conference. Lucy has appeared on BBC’s ‘Breakfast’ television to discuss innovative practice and has been interviewed on Radio 4’s ‘World at One’ regarding integrated working. She is an external examiner and guest lecturer at Sheffield Hallam and Salford Universities and also assesses undergraduate medical students at The University of Liverpool.
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Office Team
Our clients, partners and associates are fully supported by a skilled team of office staff, Brian, Lisa and Jill, ensuring a high-quality service in line with OT Service values.
Brian Trotter
Practice Manager
Brian has a wide variety of experiences to draw on in his role as Practice Manager. He graduated in 1997 from The University of Brighton with a Ba (Hons) in Physical and Business Education. He spent some time in London fitness instructing and sports coaching before re-locating to the North East, setting up his own business with the help of the Prince’s Trust.
As personal and professional circumstances changed Brian moved into an 14 year healthcare career, firstly with the ambulance service and latterly in an NHS Acute Occupational Therapy service as a Technical Instructor. He is now our full-time Practice Manager and brings a committed and creative approach to the service we provide.
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Lisa Herron
Clinical Co-ordinator
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Jill Straker
Administrator
Jill began working for The OT Service in 2020 following 30 years of work in statutory services. She brings a wealth of experience from a variety of administrative and secretarial roles, many in the NHS and thus has a huge understanding of the healthcare sector and the importance of effective administration.
Jill has helped The OT Service go from strength to strength and she is the first port of call for referrals, associate queries and general enquiries.
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Associates
Faye Gower-Smith
Occupational Therapist
Faye is a highly skilled occupational therapist with 20 years of experience working within social care. Her specialisms include housing adaptations for adults and children, housing design for social, private and local authority housing.
Faye has knowledge and skills in providing occupational therapy interventions in the management of long-term neurological conditions, specifically multiple sclerosis, motor-neurone disease and progressive supranuclear palsy. In addition, she is experienced in providing rehabilitation programmes for adults, providing assessment and risk management plans for plus-size moving and handling clients along with postural and seating assessments.
Faye has strong clinical assessment skills and is holistic in her approach ensuring advocacy for clients allowing their voice to be heard. She has a wealth of knowledge and experience in community equipment from both an operational level and in procurement of community equipment contracts.
Faye is a member of the independent practice and housing specialist sections with the Royal College of Occupational Therapy and regularly participates in continued professional development activities to ensure that she is current in her knowledge and skills.
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Wayne Dodd
Occupational Therapist
Wayne qualified as an occupational therapist in 2008 and has developed his experience through various fields and positions including the Regional Clinical Lead for Opcare’s NHS wheelchair services and clinical lead for Millbrook’s Somerset Wheelchair Service. He has worked within the areas of stroke, neurological conditions, orthopedics and currently working within a multi-disciplinary intermediate care team using the Discharge to Assess model.
Wayne’s specialist areas are in complex postural management, training in moving and handling, rehabilitation and provision of equipment, care plans, minor and major adaptations within home environments. This experience enables him to provide quality assessments and interventions to promote people’s independence. He has extensive knowledge in recommending and prescribing specialist seating and manual or powered wheelchairs.
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Sacha Khakoo
Occupational Therapist
Sacha has over 30 years’ experience working as an occupational therapist in health, neuro-rehabilitation, adult social care and housing.
Sacha’s areas of expertise include major adaptation work for adults and children with physical disabilities, assessment and recommendation for housing needs including housing needs reports, equipment provision to maximise independence in the home environment, experience in new build design for wheelchair housing and refurbishments.
Sacha is experienced in assessing functional difficulties within the home environment and has good knowledge of equipment for adults and both minor and major adaptations for adults and children to maximise independence within the home environment.
Sacha can provide advice on major adaptations and new build design to meet the needs of an individual.
Sacha has experience with providing clinical supervision to occupational therapy staff, appraisals and management of a team.
Sacha is a member of the Royal College of Occupational Therapists Specialist Section in Housing and a member of Royal College of Occupational Therapists Specialist Section Independent Practice.
Sacha maintains her professional development and supervision regularly, attending CPD sessions, training courses and conferences to enhance her practice.
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Karen Warren
Occupational Therapist
Karen has 11 years’ occupational therapy experience and is well-established specialising in equipment, housing, environmental adaptations, moving and handling, postural management and seating assessment with children and adults. She is a passionate and motivated occupational therapist who will complete a holistic assessment and report aiming to facilitate independent living, activity participation maximising clients’ potential.
Karen has worked with local authorities, prescribing appropriate equipment, completing risk assessments and advising on minor or major environmental adaptations. She has worked closely with architects to give a functional perspective on new-builds and garden designs. She has a particular knowledge of telecare and memory equipment allowing clients to remain safe and comfortable in their own homes.
Karen has experience working alongside paediatrics and adults with significant and complex needs, she has worked in a school environment ensuring children can interact with their environment, often involving the provision of appropriate seating and/or assistive technology. Karen has also completed mobility assessments for applicants applying for the blue badge.
Karen’s work for a re-ablement service involved setting goals with clients to support re-establishing meaningful activity following traumatic events. Her client-base demanded a multi-disciplinary approach and often cases required best interest decisions. Karen is confident in her ability to assist making these decisions, employing a positive risk-taking approach enabling clients with fluctuating capacity to return home with a good holistic strategy, including therapy, equipment and packages of care.
Karen’s over-arching philosophy is to empower people with disabilities so they can achieve their full potential and to enable families to care for their loved ones at home in a safe environment.
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Testimonials
Hear what our team has to say about us.