Nadia Rust, OTD, OTR/L

Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy

Education:

Doctorate in Occupational Therapy (OTD), Chatham University -2016
Bachelor of Occupational Therapy, University of Durban Wetville – 1993

About Dr. Rust:

Dr. Rust has been a practicing occupational therapist for nearly 30 years. Her early clinical experience spanned both medical and community settings with clients all across the human lifespan. For over 20 years now, she has focused on pediatrics and continues to practice in New York City in Early Intervention. In addition, she served as an independent evaluator in an NIH-funded research study examining the efficacy of sensory integration intervention in autism. Dr. Rust’s experience includes more than 15 years of managing and supervising occupational therapy and multidisciplinary departments. She currently manages the occupational therapy department for The Bronx McCarton Early Intervention Center.

Dr. Rust earned her Bachelors in Occupational Therapy from the University of Durban Westville, South Africa. She subsequently earned her Doctorate in Occupational Therapy from Chatham University in 2016. Her doctoral capstone examined the impact of a collaborative training and consultation program on teachers’ competence in providing pre-writing instruction. Her continued research and scholarship interests include Early Intervention, sensory integration and related topics, cultural humility and responsiveness, justice, equity, diversity and inclusion, and community health and wellness.

As a full-time faculty member at Dominican University since October 2017, Dr. Rust is the faculty advisor to the Dominican University chapter of the Coalition of Occupational Therapy Advocates for Diversity (COTAD). Additionally, she leads the occupational therapy program in a collaborative interprofessional student education training with the doctoral physical therapy program on cultural humility, diversity, equity, justice, and inclusion in healthcare.

Current Courses taught:

Tools of Practice
Professional Practice Skills I
Childhood and OT Practice

Recent Publications:

Edeer, A. & Rust, N. (2021). Diversity, inclusion, and justice with community-oriented interprofessional practice. In Pizzi, M. & Amir M. (Eds.). (in progress). Interprofessional perspectives on community practice: Promoting health, well-being and quality of life. SLACK

Recent Presentations

Rust, N. & Govender, S. (November, 2021). A Justice Lens to Integrating Community Practice-based Experiences into Education and Curricula. New York State Occupational Therapy Association Annual Conference

Cavaliere, C., Rust, N., Ezemdu, V., Distefano, N., Gerard, S., Lapaj, A., & Petrosky, K., Tavarez, E. (2021). The Efficacy of Early Intervention for Goal Achievement in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Comparative Study Across Settings. New York State Occupational Therapy Association Annual Conference

Rust, N. (April, 2021) Effective Learning Strategies and Test Taking Techniques. New York State Occupational Therapy Association Student Conclave

Fau, L., Connor, K., Mentor Rust, N. (May 2021)
Finding Joy in Time of Chaos: How to Handle Anxiety During COVID-19. National Alliance on Mental Illness Rockland

Moderated Virtual Community Practice Chats in Support of Dominican Students and Alumn. (2020- 2021). Topics: Telepractice, COVID 19- and Occupational Therapy, Interoception, Diversity, Inclusion, and Occupational Justice, Resilience.

Constenla, L., Hernandez, L., Nelson, K., Mentor Rust., N. (September, 2020). Sensory Play: What do my child’s senses have to do with their mental health?’. National Alliance on Mental Illness Rockland

Coronel, F., Feretti, S., Magno, J., Rust, N., & Damiao, J. (April, 2020). Gamified Instructional Strategies: Cultural Competence Skills for Occupational Therapy Students. Accepted at American Occupational Therapy Association. Boston.