Scholarship winner Fabiha Nishat aims to bring OT to underdeveloped countries

“Coming from an underdeveloped country, I’ve always seen that the only treatment for any illness is medication,” said Fabiha Nishat. “If medications fail, patients are left with no oth2020 Kay J. Schlomer Endowed Scholarship for Occupational Therapy winner Fabiha Nishater options.”

In fact, when Nishat immigrated from Bangladesh to Hamtramck, she brought with her memories of her grandmother being bedridden for years with arthritis. And then in high school, Nishat became aware of another way. 

“I learned about the profession of occupational therapy and gained an immediate interest,” Nishat said. “Through observations and speaking to OT professionals, I discovered that while doctors and nurses save people’s lives after illnesses and injuries, occupational therapists show them how to live again.” 

Now Nishat is on track to graduate from the WSU Applebaum program in December, a journey that will be funded in part through this year’s Kay J. Schlomer Endowed Scholarship for Occupational Therapy.

Schlomer, a 1961 OT graduate, left her estate to fund endowed scholarships in both occupational and physical therapy. These scholarships recognize scholastic achievement, encourage continued progress and provide financial assistance to students. 

Nishat is one of more than 100 students to earn a Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences scholarship for the 2020-21 academic year. She had just accepted a leadership position in the newly formed WSU chapter of the Coalition of Occupational Therapy Advocates for Diversity — a student-led national organization committed to promote inclusion, diversity and equity — when classes transitioned to online learning in response to the novel coronavirus pandemic. Once students are back on campus, the group plans to organize events that will create an open dialogue about different cultures, genders, socioeconomic status, religions, and disabilities they will encounter as occupational therapists.

“I see myself working as an OT in an environment that supports my personal and professional growth, one that pushes me to my full potential,” said Nishat. “I also envision myself starting a nonprofit organization that will help underdeveloped countries, like my native country Bangladesh, become more familiarized to the therapeutic side of medicine.

“This is exactly what I want to do for the rest of my life. I want to be the hope people need in their darkest hours.”

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