Aging-in-Place: How Do We Navigate the Reimbursement Gap?

Innovative Aging: Aging-in-Place: How Do We Navigate the Reimbursement Gap? (Episode 13)

Audio Runtime: ___ Minutes; Learning Assessment Time: ___Minutes

Join host Carol Chiang, OTR/L, CAPS, ECHM, CHAMP, as she sits down with expert occupational therapists Dawn Heiderscheidt, OTR/L, CAPS, and Dr. Sydney Marshman, OTD, OTR/L, BCG. In this episode, our guests share their extensive experience navigating the financial realities of home modifications, blending evidence-based frameworks with creative funding strategies. You will discover how to push past traditional medical models, advocate for the innate value of therapy, and build an intentional local network to actionably overcome client coverage gaps.

Learning Outcomes

• Analyze the evidence around the cost-efficiency of proactive home modifications and the clinical limitations of evidence-based programs or grant-funded assistance programs
• Apply evidence-based, practical strategies to actionably address client financial barriers across varying income levels, utilizing creative funding solutions and tiered home modifications
• Solve patient case scenarios utilizing community resources to optimize client-centered Aging-in-Place goals while considering reimbursement gaps

Guest Bio: Dawn Heiderscheidt, OTR/L, CAPS, ECHM, CHAMP, is an occupational therapist and the founder of Aurora Independence, a home accessibility and home safety consulting practice serving the greater Philadelphia region. Her work sits at the intersection of clinical reasoning and the built environment, translating evidence-informed assessments into concrete modifications that enable older adults and adults with disabilities to continue living in the homes and roles that matter to them. Dawn's approach is client-centered and rigorously practical: every recommendation is grounded in how a person actually moves. She is a national continuing education provider for both healthcare and home remodeling professionals, a guest lecturer on entrepreneurship at universities, and an active member of AOTA and POTA, where she previously served on her district board. Her perspective is shaped by years as a rehab specialist, by caregiving for her own parents, and by navigating healthcare as a person living with a chronic condition.

Guest Bio: Sydney Marshman is an occupational therapist, healthcare entrepreneur, and community advocate based in Des Moines, Iowa, with expertise in aging in place, accessibility, caregiver support, and community-based healthcare innovation. As the founder and CEO of Happy at Home Consulting, she leads an interdisciplinary team providing in-home therapy, care navigation, and home modification consulting throughout the state, with a focus on preserving autonomy and improving quality of life. Sydney is known for bringing together healthcare systems, public health initiatives, and community organizations to develop collaborative and practical solutions that address the real-world challenges individuals and families face as they age or navigate disability. In addition to serving as President of the Iowa Occupational Therapy Association and President of Home Modifications Iowa, she has presented nationally on topics including aging in place, accessibility, caregiver support, and innovative community-based care models. Her work emphasizes the importance of creating homes, public spaces, and communities that support dignity, participation, and connection across the lifespan.

Additional disclosure: Our guest today is affiliated with a company that develops technology in the area we’re discussing. While we won’t be endorsing any specific product, listeners should be aware of this connection as part of our commitment to transparency.

This is an audio-only course. Additional materials are available for download within the course. To receive continuing education credit, complete the course and the accompanying quiz.