Patricia Grady-Dominguez (’18, ’22) came to Fort Collins in 2016 when she was admitted into the Department of Occupational Therapy’s master’s program at Colorado State University. Two degrees and several major life events later, Grady-Dominguez remains in Fort Collins as she begins a new role as a post-doctoral fellow and assistant professor.

While pursuing her undergraduate degree in biochemistry and biophysics at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York, Grady-Dominguez found her passion – and talent – for conducting research. While the research process seemed to come naturally, Grady-Dominguez’s interest in biochemistry waned as she learned she could apply research to help people with their health and well-being more directly. While volunteering at a local hospital, observing different practitioners and how they engaged with the research process, Grady-Dominguez attended a journal club with occupational therapists who told her how important it was for OTs to generate and consume research to inform their practice. This sparked inspiration for Grady-Dominguez.

“After that first journal club, I knew I had found my professional home,” said Grady-Dominguez.

At CSU, under the advising of Department Head Anita Bundy, Grady-Dominguez completed her master’s thesis in 2018 and began her Ph.D. in the fall of the same year. Grady-Dominguez flourished with Bundy’s mentorship, and she took on the role of graduate research assistant for Bundy while completing her Ph.D. in December 2022. Upon graduation, she joined the CSU-OT faculty team as an adjunct assistant professor and shortly thereafter began her time as a postdoctoral fellow under Assistant Professor Jen Weaver’s mentorship.

Not only was Grady-Dominguez busy in the classroom and with research, but she was also active within the occupational therapy department and the College of Health and Human Sciences. While earning her master’s degree, Grady-Dominguez worked in the Center for Community Partnerships as a mentor for students with disabilities. She also served on the Dean’s Leadership Council for four years, including a term as executive secretary from 2020 to 2021. Grady-Dominguez was one of two students to receive the 2021-22 Dean’s Fellowship from the College of Health and Human Sciences. The Dean’s Fellowship provided a $20,000 grant to Grady-Dominguez to continue and expand her research in sensory integration.

A myriad of research

Grady-Dominguez has conducted research at every level of her higher-education journey. At each of these levels her research has covered different interests, but there are some common threads.

“Human health and well-being have always been at the forefront of my research,” Grady-Dominguez explained, “and I’ve maintained a specific interest in pediatrics.”

Additionally, she has always had an interest in measurement – how we observe change and if the interventions or approaches used in treatments are making a difference in the health and well-being of the people served.

In her new venture as a post-doctoral researcher with Weaver, their work focuses on the implementation of measurement tools and shared decision-making approaches in clinical settings, specifically for people with severe brain injury who are in disorders of consciousness such as a coma.

“I feel really strongly that occupational therapists should be developing and validating our own measurement tools,” said Grady-Dominguez. “The outcomes we seek are unique to our profession, and they’re so important to our clients. We need to be at the forefront of creating those tools.”

The ‘just right challenge’

There is a concept in occupational therapy called the ‘just right challenge’ where the OT sets up a client’s environment in a way that challenges them enough to grow, but not so much that they can’t succeed.

“I’ve always felt like the OT department gives me the ‘just right challenge’,” said Grady-Dominguez, “my advisers, professors, and colleagues have offered me challenges, let me stumble, and helped me problem-solve throughout my entire pathway from master’s student to postdoc/assistant faculty.”

This has kept Grady-Dominguez at CSU for nearly eight years.

Grady-Dominguez’s challenges were not limited to research: like all other students in 2020, she learned to navigate virtual education through COVID. In addition, she and her partner welcomed two members to the Ramily with the births of their children in 2020 and 2022. The department’s support of students’ academic and personal life integration has been key to her success.

In a word, Grady-Dominguez describes the CSU Department of Occupational Therapy as “thoughtful.” She admires how no decisions are made in or about the department without careful consideration of options, consequences, and the future of students and colleagues. She commends the adaptability of the department as well, noting the fluid changes implemented in the department during COVID to continue providing education and research for students and faculty.

Moving forward

Grady-Dominguez’s passion for measurement and assessment within OT has grown sparking her desire to work at a university-affiliated teaching hospital in the future so she can help bridge the time gap between publication of research and adoption into practice, which is currently almost 17 years.

“So many researchers create excellent assessments, but then they sit on a shelf for years,” explained Grady-Dominguez, “then therapists don’t know about them, so they can’t use them.”

Working in a translational research position would situate Grady-Dominguez to be a liaison between the clinical and research worlds, and even to work on merging the two.

Grady-Dominguez has been a part of the OT department for nearly eight years, with success coming at every turn. Her commitment to improving human health and wellbeing is a testament to the environment her faculty, advisers, mentors, and colleagues have nurtured within the department.

The Department of Occupational Therapy is part of CSU’s College of Health and Human Sciences.