We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Patrice Maynard. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Patrice below.

Alright, Patrice thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

In January 2022, with the help of my business coach, I planned my first online conference for occupational therapy entrepreneurs of color. This happened while running my pediatric mobile practice and in school for my post-professional occupational therapy doctorate. Being a person of color and a business owner, I noticed there was no community specific to occupational therapists (OTs) of color who desire to start a business or are business owners to network, learn from each other, and build relationships. I knew there were questions, experiences, and nuances that were not being mentioned in other online spaces where OTs of color could share and where they would feel a level of understanding from one another that was not addressed in general, occupational therapy entrepreneurial online communities.

I started asking OTs on social media, whom I have been networking with since the height of the pandemic, and OTs I have been following to be panel speakers for the event. In total, 30 OT entrepreneurs of color were panel speakers for the two-day event in May 2022. I also decided to start a Facebook community called the Occupational Therapy Entrepreneurs of Color (OTEC) for OTs who attended or were panel speakers to continue to network with each other.

After the event, it made me realize how needed such a community is for OTs of color, and it was a risk that stemmed from a lack I saw as an OT entrepreneur of color.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

About Me I am a pediatric occupational therapist (OT) in northern New Jersey. A fellow OT student introduced me to OT during the first semester of my first year in college. After researching the curriculum at my school, I decided to switch my major from psychology to OT and never looked back. I have been practicing as an OT clinician since 2011. After graduating with my master’s in OT, I started my career as a rehabilitation technician at a skilled nursing facility while studying for the OTR board examination. Before passing the board examination, I became an occupational therapy assistant (OTA) for three years, then became a board-certified and licensed occupational therapist (OTR). In 2017, I started independent contracting in early intervention by creating my LLC while continuing to work with the geriatrics population. By 2019, I entirely switched to working in the pediatric population.

Products/Services
I have a mobile pediatric practice called Maynard Milestones, a mobile OT service for children from 3-18 to provide services at home and through teletherapy. For families, we offer a free screening with a meet and greet with the family, OT evaluations, treatment sessions, consultations related to school, wellness, baby registry/ toy suggestions, babyproofing/ childproofing, and parent coaching. We want to address parents’ and caregivers’ needs and their child’s needs with a holistic lens.

For OT professionals, we provide online products such as online conferences, webinars, and an online community for OT entrepreneurs of color. As for OT professionals, we want to create a space for OTs of color to network, connect and address business and related entrepreneurial needs and concerns in a community where there are colleagues who look like them and feel seen and heard.

I am most proud of my relationship-building skills with my clients, whether they are parents, caregivers, or fellow OT practitioners of color. The main thing I want my potential clients and followers to know is that this is a brand that will continue to cater to their needs. Being a Black-owned business, we will always want to go above and beyond to provide the necessary research backed by our reasoning on suggestions of products and services we provide. Creating an experience is what we adhere to, whether it is a treatment session or an online event that will be culturally responsive to our clients.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

After graduating with my master’s in occupational therapy, I did not pass the board exam immediately. I had to take the exam more than once to be an OTR. Due to not passing the boards for three years, I had to pivot and utilize other ways to work in the OT field while studying for the exam. All this occurred while my father was battling cancer and eventually lost his battle. Within three years, I became a rehabilitation technician for seven months. Then, I transitioned to an occupational therapy assistant (OTA) to build service delivery skills to clients while working with other OTs and rehab professionals to network. The loss of my father and learning about how OTAs contribute to the rehab profession helped me understand my clients and colleagues once I passed the board exam and began practicing as an OTR. They are still lessons that I carry with me to this day.

If you could go back in time, do you think you would have chosen a different profession or specialty?

I would probably pick the same occupational therapy field. I initially wanted to study physical therapy, but the OT student then persuaded me to consider OT instead, and I am so glad I took a chance in this field. I knew I wanted to work in the medical field, but I knew I did not want to be a doctor or a nurse yet still leave an impact on people’s lives. I am doing that exact thing and am happy to say that the OT profession found me. I am grateful to be a part of this beautiful, rewarding field where I can reinvent myself and create the life I want to live.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.maynardmilestones.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/maynardmilestones
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/maynardmilestones
• Linkedin: Patrice Maynard