Angela Benfield, PhD, OTR

Assistant Professor

Dr. Benfield has over 25 years of clinical experience as a pediatric occupational therapist. She worked in both rural and urban settings. As a school-based occupational therapist, she provided assistive technology assessment and services for children in the public schools. Her research interests include developing expertise, professional reasoning, evidence-based practices and measurement. She developed the model of evidence-informed professional thinking (EIPT) and the measure of EIPT. The measure of EIPT is a self-report scale for allied health professionals (occupational therapy, physical therapy, nursing, speech and language therapy, social workers, etc.) who work clients. The scale probes habits of engaging in professional reasoning, EBP in the clinic and outcomes measurement in daily practice.

Professional Background
Education
- 2016 - PhD - Health Sciences - University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee
- 1997 - Master of Science - Occupational Therapy, Emphasis in Family-Centered Care and Pediatrics - University of Illinois- Chicago
- 1992 - Bachelor's of Science - Occupational Therapy - University of Wisconsin- Milwuakee
Publications

Boyt Schell, B.A. & Benfield, A. (In Press). Chapter 24: Professional reasoning in practice. professional reasoning. In Schell, B. A. & Gillan, G. Eds. Willard & Spackman’s Occupational Therapy, 14th edition. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Benfield, A. (In Press). Chapter 24: Development of professional reasoning. In Boyt Schell, B. A. & Schell, J. W. Eds.(In Press) Clinical and Professional Reasoning in Occupational Therapy, 3rd ed. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Benfield, A. & Kitchens, J. (In Press) Chapter 7: Scientific Reasoning and Evidence in Practice. In Boyt Schell, B. A. & Schell, J. W. Eds.(In Press) Clinical and Professional Reasoning in Occupational Therapy, 3rd ed. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Benfield, A., & Jeffery, H. (2022). Exploring Evidence Based Practice Implementation by Occupational Therapists: Implications for Fieldwork. Journal of Occupational Therapy Education, 6 (4). Retrieved from https://encompass.eku.edu/jote/vol6/iss4/10

Benfield A, Krueger RB. Making Decision-Making Visible- Teaching the Process of Evaluating Interventions. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18(7):3635. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18073635

Benfield A, Krueger RB. Topic: Professional competence in occupational therapy. Australian Occupational Therapy Journal. 2021 Feb. DOI: 10.1111/1440-1630.12724.

Benfield, A. and Johnston, M.V. (2020). Initial development of a measure of evidence-informed professional thinking. Aust Occup Ther J. Epub ahead of print 2020/03/14. DOI: 10.1111/1440-1630.12655.

Boyt Schell, B.A. & Benfield, A. Chapter 6: Aspects of professional reasoning. In Boyt Schell, B. A. & Schell, J. W. Eds. (2017). Clinical and Professional Reasoning in Occupational Therapy, 3rd ed. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Angela Benfield, PhD, OTR

Education