Y'all aren't ready. You. are. not. ready. The tomfoolery of this season finale, y'all. Channeling their inner Housewives, the thOTs welcome the sassiest guests they could find in the OT&OS world. Joined by Dr. Arameh Anvarizadeh, Dr. Jessica Kramer, and Dr. Karen McCarthy, these housewives - and their token white gay - bring the drama, the receipts, and all the opinions on who truly holds the title of "Occupation Queen." Are you team OS or OT? Both? Neither? A whirlwind of academic drama and Housewives flair, they tackle the age old question: "Who truly is the white refrigerator of the occupational world?" Tune in for a showdown that promises to educate and entertain, complete with all the sass and class you'd expect from the Dr. thOTs duo, Dr. Khalilah Johnson and Dr. Ryan Lavalley. Highlights include: Measurement queens, building bridges, and bone collectors, oh my!

Can peer-review be sexy? Well to answer that question, the Dr. thOTs duo touch base with the thOT in Chief, Dr. Stacey Reynolds, Editor-in-Chief of the American Journal of Occupational Therapy (AJOT). They discuss the fabulous life as an Editor in Chief, the state of the science, peer-review processes, and the politics of trustworthy science. The three docs take research from farm to table to make sure you know where your data is coming from! Highlights include: Stacey being a nerd, Ryan starting a revolution, and Khalilah calling universities and associations to action.

Khalilah and Ryan dive into a convo with Dr. Frederick V. Engram Jr. to get real about publishing. From navigating academia to reclaiming voice and storytelling, this episode is all about truth-telling, resistance, and writing for liberation—not validation. Come for the critique, stay for the community. Highlights include: Khalilah telling yo mama jokes, Dr. Engram not letting anybody play in his face, and Academia getting put in its place.

This week on Dr. thOTs, the duo get into design and branding with Stephanie Kaczynski, a PhD candidate serving up stories and communication . After exploring her "diss" focused on community organizing, police violence, and George Floyd Square, Stephanie breaks down how storytelling, strategy, and branding shape science communication—and why humanizing research actually matters. This one is interdisciplinary, it's pretty, and it’s thOTful. Tune in to rethink how you communicate for change. Highlights include: Stephanie stanning the oxford comma and Ryan and Khalilah getting distracted by an amazing dissertation.

This week, the Dr. thOTs duo grab some time with the very busy Christine Gunningle, program director of Durham Tech's OTA program and educator extraordinaire. She pops off with personal stories and pedagogical pointers, positioning OTA programs as clear launch pads for amazing practitioners. The educators discuss classroom strategies, accessibility, and what OT programs can learn from OTA education and approaches! Highlights include: OTA programs getting their flowers, Christine getting real about occupation, and someone licking a handrail.

The thOTs are not here for your messy spreadsheets or half-baked interview guides. They’re diving into data evaluation and communication. Your favorite duo unpacks what it really means to produce knowledge that matters. Accuracy? Required. Completeness? Non-negotiable. Relevance? Don’t show up without it. Whether you’re a seasoned researcher, a grad student in the trenches, or just nosy, this convo will get your epistemo-ontological life together. Spoiler, this one's for the nerds. Highlights include: Ryan being the queen of codes, Khalilah calling out raggedy methods, and the thOTs deciding when to gate keep.

Ryan and Khalilah welcome Dr. Jen Newton onto the podcast this week to discuss intellectual and development disabilities, death row, and school systems. The three dive into a difficult conversation about the realities of our justice system, the ways ableism and anti-blackness are leveraged to dehumanize in the US. They also talk about ways occupational therapy practitioners can step up in advocacy to mitigate the school to prison pipeline. Highlights include: A necessary conversationContent warning: discussion of state death

Happy Pride thOTs! This week, the Dr. Duo is queering the convo exploring the who, what, and why when it comes to gay bars, tea rooms, lesbian hangouts, queer spaces, and more. From bachlorettes to Maggie Clapp, from 1700s to 2019, Ryan and Khalilah cover it all. They’ve got hot takes and cold truths when it comes to the messiness of who is welcome and who isn't, and why knowing the history is part of the homework. From the dance floor to the discourse, it’s giving intersectional, intentional, and unapologetically queer. Highlights include: Khalilah getting an A+ on her queer vocabulary, Ryan clarifying which Molly, and the thOTs making a legal disclaimer.

Hold onto your gait belts, y’all—this episode is serving up tech tea with a side of clinical realness. Khalilah and Ryan are joined by the brilliant Sarah Lyon of OT Potential to unpack where occupational therapy meets artificial intelligence. We’re talking AI scribes, clinical decision support, and the big ol’ ethical elephants in the room. The trio dives into how AI is shaking up healthcare, what it means for future OT practitioners, and why we need to stay alert about who’s designing these systems—and who they’re serving. The crew keep it real about the promise and the pitfalls of tech in care work. Highlights include: Physicians having egos, Sarah fearing for our children, and Ryan and Khalilah flip flopping on AI.

Whew, chile. This episode gets into the thick of it—the Dr. thOTs duo are back at it, peeling back the layers of identity, advocacy, and the messiness of inclusion. From classroom to community, they’re asking hard questions: Who gets to be included? Who should be excluded? Are we all just inside a bush? They kiki about critical pedagogy and managing discomfort while learning. You know these two love a good boundary! But even in research? Racial caucusing, coalition-building across difference, and, yes, occupation as a tool for liberation - you know they couldn't leave her out. Highlights include: Khalilah joining Michelle Obama in saying FAFO and Ryan deciding "clusion" is somehow a word.