Pesidential Address - Penny's Web
Molly V. Strzelecki
The spider rings handed out at the beginning of the Presidential Address made many a look of confusion pass over attendees’ faces. And it’s pretty safe to say that no one was expecting AOTA President Penelope Moyers Cleveland to enter her yearly speech dressed with the flair of a Vegas showgirl.
And yet, it totally worked.
Based on a theme of the mythical Penelope and her weaving the dream life that she wanted for herself, Moyers Cleveland delivered her yearly Conference address wrapped in a sparkling red cape with pointy hat, inspiration from a brainstorming session at the Nevada Occupational Therapy Association meeting last fall. It was something that was not only cleverly classic Cleveland, but also helped dramatically reiterate her overall message of the importance of spinning connections among practice, education, and research, as the mythical Penelope spun and weaved her threads, and as a spider spins and weaves a web. The cape, Moyers Cleveland pointed out, was “not one spider web in its design. It is made up of many spider webs linked together to produce a fabric that is spun with threads, coming from all directions.
“This cape is symbolic,” Moyers Cleveland continued, “of how we must link together!” As she pointed to the hat, she added, “The hat, well, okay, it doesn’t represent anything. Maybe I’m just looking for a rationale to be outrageous, and from me you would expect nothing less! We do need to laugh even when our work is so serious and thus we need to be role models in living life to its fullest.”
While her cape and hat certainly grabbed the audience’s attention, Moyers Cleveland’s words kept them captivated. She charged each and every member to be a spider of the profession, to be dream weavers and connectors, when times are good and when times are bad. She pointed to the various ways that AOTA has moved toward its goals of the Centennial Vision and being spiders and connecting the various weaving webs, through outlets like OT Connections, the Model Curriculum Ad Hoc Committees, and the Blueprint for the Future of Education Ad Hoc Committee, to name a few. Being involved in AOTA is important, Moyers Cleveland noted because “When we do not take part in AOTA, loss of commitment shrinks the web of energy, because we are essentially abdicating our cool spider powers to those who have traditionally been the true spiders or elected leaders. Loss of input from the members then places a heavy burden on the few.” She impressed upon members: Remember, YOU are the spider!
As the profession of occupational therapy continues to grow in an also ever-expanding world, Moyers Cleveland asked the audience, “How do we spin our webs organizationally, thereby empowering ourselves to practice authentic occupational therapy that is no longer constrained by system boundaries, arbitrary insurance rules, policy issues, red tape, and undue pressure to reduce costs to the point of sacrificing quality?” The question was met by rousing applause as Moyers Cleveland noted that AOTA is asserting its role in healthcare policy and political advocacy.
“AOTA’s work on outcomes couldn’t be more fortuitous because of an emphasis clearly coming from Washington and President Obama on health information technology and comparative effectiveness research. Significant governmental funding has been set aside for the development of standards for health IT and on the education of professionals in using the electronic health record,” Moyers Cleveland stated. “Talk about organizational change!” She emphatically added that OT must take a leadership role in how occupational therapy will be documented in the electronic record as a beginning step in controlling the way in which our effectiveness will be measured and determined.
It’s been a big year for occupational therapy, and through the rough and tumble economic times, “Spiders should never give up!” Moyers Cleveland said.
“Think about the spider web spun on the porch or in the doorway,” she told the audience. “On the one hand, it’s so dainty and light. And yet, when the bad weather comes, it somehow manages to stay intact. Looking at the web after the rain, you’ll see a spider that may be a little worse for the wear, but because of its strong web, it didn’t blow away.”
Moyers Cleveland noted that clearly the strength of the AOTA web comes from the number of spiders spinning, and despite tough economic times, AOTA membership is growing. She charged each member with the task of bringing in new members to continue to strengthen the web, noting that the Association’s strong national partnerships with Genesis Rehab and RehabCare “only add to our growing power in meeting the needs of society.”
As we move forward in the profession, contributing to AOTPAC and participating in the newly implemented Member-2-Member campaign are essential, Moyers Cleveland stated.
“AOTA’s web must become bigger,” she said. “The work of AOTA, that is, our work in web creation, never stops, regardless of what happens to the American economy. Each day brings us one step closer to celebrating the Centennial Vision of occupational therapy in the year 2017.
“We cannot let up,” she emphasized. “Each and every one of you has to embrace your role as a spider. You must continue to make our webs connecting education, research, and practice strong. If each person does his or her part, we will achieve our Centennial Vision.”
As the audience members held up their spider rings and promised President Moyers Cleveland that they are together in weaving this web, promised to be a true spider, interconnecting to achieve the Centennial Vision, Moyers Cleveland smiled out at the crowd.
“I’ll bet you’ll look at spiders now in a whole new way. Go be the spider!” she said. “And live life to its fullest.”