July 2026 Specialty Spotlight: Occupational Therapy & Aging in Place
Meet … Brandy Archie, OTD, OTR/L
Founder of AskSAMIE and OTConnected
- What are 3 words that best describe you as an occupational therapy practitioner?
- Creative + excited + optimistic
- Can you provide an overview of your OT practice experiences so far?
- Brandy has 17 years of experience as an occupational therapy practitioner. She shared that she has worked in every practice setting except school-based practice. Her passion is helping older adults age in place. Throughout her career, she has worked in home health and private practice in a variety of roles. These experiences led her to create her business, AskSAMIE, a virtual platform that helps people access resources, services, and adaptive equipment
- How did you specifically become involved in working with aging in place?
- Brandy began her private practice after working in home health and acute care. In those settings, she repeatedly saw patients receive excellent recommendations from healthcare providers, but those recommendations were often never implemented once the patients returned home. Since starting AskSAMIE, her mission has been to help bridge that gap by making sure those recommendations are put into practice
- What are common reasons clients may seek occupational therapy services with your services?
- Brandy explained that there are two main reasons someone may access AskSAMIE.
- The first is when a person experiences an acute change in status and needs assistance with mobility and functioning at home.
- The second is through referrals. Healthcare organizations serving older adults often seek options to support their patients, and many individuals also learn about AskSAMIE through family members, word of mouth, or online searches.
- Although the business originated in the Kansas City, Missouri, area, it now serves clients nationwide.
- She also shared that through OTConnected, another platform she created, patients can find occupational therapy practitioners and be matched with an OT who is local and specializes in their area of need.
- What are the top 2-3 assessments you use most frequently when working with aging in place clients?
- Brandy most frequently uses a home assessment and a wheelchair assessment. Both assessments use templates that she created herself. Although they are not standardized assessments, they help her better understand a patient’s home environment and individual needs
- What are the 2-3 interventions or categories of interventions you use most frequently when treating clients in this specialty?
- Brandy explained that her interventions align with the Person-Environment-Occupation (PEO) Model, using a holistic approach to identify the root cause of a person’s challenges while addressing their goals.Many interventions involve addressing socioeconomic barriers, supporting habit formation, and providing education and counseling to help improve overall health outcomes.
- What does a typical day look like as an OT practitioner for Brandy?
- Although Brandy no longer provides full-time clinical care, she shared that approximately:
- 50% of her time is spent developing tools and resources for patients and occupational therapy practitioners through OTConnected.
- 25% of her time is spent treating patients in their homes or through virtual services.
- 25% of her time is spent educating others about AskSAMIE and OTConnected through social media and other outreach efforts.
- Although Brandy no longer provides full-time clinical care, she shared that approximately:
- How would you describe occupational therapy’s distinct value when working with Aging in Place clients?
- Brandy believes occupational therapy helps people accomplish both the things they want to do and the things they need to do each day. Regardless of the barrier, occupational therapists work to identify solutions that allow clients to participate more fully in their daily lives
- What do you think is the biggest challenge (current or future) for occupational therapy practitioners in this specialty?
- Brandy believes one of the biggest challenges is that occupational therapy practitioners are often limited by the traditional medical model.
- Through AskSAMIE and OTConnected, her goal is to involve more occupational therapy practitioners by helping them gain clients, grow their own practices, and network with one another. Her vision is to continue expanding the value of occupational therapy into a wider variety of practice settings
- What advice would you have for an OT practitioner or student who is interested in working with Aging in Place clients?
- “Do it! Because there’s a lot of opportunity here. Be creative in how you engage your talents and create your own career without having to work for someone else.”
- Can you share a project or case study from your experience that offers valuable insights for other occupational therapy practitioners?
- A virtual OT assessment project in the Kansas City, Missouri area for adults ages 55 and older who lived in the area and met 350% of the federal poverty level, approximately $50,000 annually for a single individual.
- Each participant received a $1,500 budget for adaptive equipment and technology based on their individual needs and was followed for six months as part of a longitudinal study.
- The outcomes were significant. Rehospitalizations decreased by 27%, only 2 of the 40 participants reported a fear of falling after the intervention, and participants’ quality of life increased by 66%. The project demonstrated that meaningful improvements in quality of life do not require costly home modifications.
- Participants received equipment such as tub benches, shower chairs, toilet risers, bed rails, and temporary ramps. The budget also included a one-year virtual exercise subscription to support those who faced barriers to attending a gym. Project leaders prioritized flexibility so each participant could receive the supports that best met their needs.
- The project was supported in part by Health Forward and Jewish Family Services. The primary challenges were securing funding for equipment and helping participants overcome their fear of technology.
- Brandy developed the home assessments used throughout the project. Outcomes were measured using the WHO Quality of Life assessment, participant reports of previous hospitalizations, and a fall risk tool to assess fear of falling.
- Overall, the project demonstrated that affordable adaptive equipment and individualized interventions can successfully support aging in place by improving quality of life, helping participants achieve their goals, and enabling them to return to meaningful leisure activities.
- Anything else you would like to share with our community?
- Brandy encourages occupational therapy practitioners to sign up for OTConnected. She believes the platform helps practitioners connect with one another, making it easier to network, collaborate, and enjoy their work
#SpecialtySpotlight #AginginPlace #Entrepreneurship #RDSIS #HomeModification
Do you have an idea for an RDSIS Specialty Spotlight? Or do you want to be spotlighted? Please reach out!
Thank you for reading and Happy Summer!
A big thank you to our RDSIS intern – @Breanna Evens – for helping coordinate and conduct this interview.
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