Division of Occupational Therapy

Tina McNulty, Ph.D., OTR/L

Martina McNultyOccupational History

Tina joined the profession in 1987 and has enjoyed different roles in the field such as occupational therapy assistant, occupational therapist, educator, and researcher.  She continues to love the challenge that our profession sets as its core mission: How can we best support people to do what they need and want to do in their daily lives? 

Tina has a passion for integrating the psychosocial aspects of clients’ lives into occupational therapy, whether it be with persons with primary psychiatric conditions or addressing the psychosocial needs of individuals with physical disabilities. Her first study examined the validity of using hospital-based assessments to estimate home safety in persons with psychiatric conditions. 

Later her dissertation examined aspects daily lives of older adults who were homebound and nonhomebound, e.g., objective measurement of activities of daily living ability, perception of occupational performance needs, home safety ability, role involvement, and the presence of depressive symptoms. 

Other areas of research that Tina has co-investigated include time use of women who are homeless and using Prochaska and DiClemente’s Stages of Change Model while doing home evaluations. She is currently investigating potentially modifiable lifestyle factors in persons with Parkinson’s disease, i.e., time use, perceptions of occupational challenges, and level of resilience.

Tina is committed to meeting the challenge of educating occupational students in a way that addresses both the demands of current practice and future practice.  She greatly enjoys her role as a mentor for students and as a facilitator of their active leaning processes.  She has presented and published on such educational topics as professional reflection and problem-based learning.

Away from the Division of Occupational Therapy Tina can be found adventuring with her preschool-age son, enjoying outdoor activities, or as time allows, reading a new novel or intriguing non-fiction book.

Education

Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
Doctor of Philosophy in Education, 2003

Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
Master of Science in Occupational Therapy, 1997

Pacific University, Forest Grove, OR
Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy, 1991

Mt. Hood Community College, Gresham, OR
Associate of Arts in Occupational Therapy, 1987

Current Position

Assistant Professor in the Division of Occupational Therapy; Faculty appointment in the Center on Aging

Research Interests

  • Assessing home safety and community living needs in persons with cognitive impairments
  • Daily living skills of community-dwelling older adults
  • Adaptive daily living strategies of persons with chronic psychiatric and physical conditions
  • Psychosocial aspects of daily occupations
  • Case-based teaching methods
  • Development of professional reasoning and reflection

Recent Scholarship

Peer Reviewed

McNulty, M. C., Crowe, T. K., & VanLeit.  (2004).  Promoting Professional Reflection through Problem-Based Learning Evaluation Activities.  Occupational Therapy in Health Care, 18 (1/2), 71–82.

McNulty, M. C., Johnson, J., Poole, J. L., & Winkle, M.  (2003). Using the transtheoretical model of change to implement home safety modifications with community-dwelling older adults: An exploratory study.  Physical and Occupational Therapy in Geriatrics, 21 (4), 53-66.

McNulty, M. C., & Fisher, A. G.  (2001). Validity of using the AMPS to estimate home safety in individuals with psychiatric conditions.  American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 55, 649-655.

Non-peer Reviewed

Keane, J., Starrett, R. & Turner, A.  (2003, Spring).  Aging and Mental Fitness.  Indian
Elder Caregiver, Newsletter of the New Mexico Geriatric Education Center, 4-5.  (Served as supervising faculty for graduate students writing this article).

McNulty, M. C.  Occupational therapy role with older adults.  (2003, Spring).  Indian
Elder Caregiver, Newsletter of the New Mexico Geriatric Education Center, 5. 

McNulty, M. C.  (1999).  Half- or Full-day Kindergarten: Choices for Parents in the
Poudre School District. Fort Collins, CO: Research and Development Center for the Advancement of Student Learning,

Contributor to Borg, B., & Bruce, M. A. (1997).  Occupational therapy stories:
Psychosocial interaction in practice.  Thorofare, NJ: Slack.


Manuscripts submitted

McNulty, M. C.,, Crowe, T. K., Kroening, C., & VanLeit, B.  Time use of women who are homeless.  Submitted to the Occupational Therapy Journal of Research.

McNulty, M. C. & Lindeman, A.   Use of the COPM with older Adults with and without
depressive symptoms.  Submitted to the journal Occupational Therapy Physical and Occupational Therapy in Geriatrics.

McNulty, M. C., & Fisher, A. F.  Comparison of activities of daily living ability in older
adults who are homebound and nonhomebound.   Submitted to the journal of the American Occupational Therapy Association.

Manuscripts in preparation

Poole, J. L., & McNulty, M. C.  Validity of the Community Integration Questionnaire in
women with rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes mellitus. 

McNulty, M. C., & Fisher, A. F.  Relationship between perceived activities of daily living
(ADL) problems and ADL ability in older adults who are homebound and nonhomebound. 

McNulty, M. C., & Fisher, A. G.  Overall home safety ability of older adults who are
homebound and nonhomebound. 

McNulty, M. C., & Lozano, A.  Evaluation of the Occupational Therapy Student Performance Assessment: 2001-2004.

Contact Information

Email: tina.mcnulty@hsc.utah.edu
Phone: 801-585-9292