Looking for a profession that offered her a creative opportunity to help others, Patricia Moursalian found occupational therapy to be the perfect fit. She loves having the opportunity to rehabilitate patients by maximizing their independence with daily activities; she finds the most rewarding part of her field to be seeing patients succeed and recover, especially when they do things they didn’t think they could do. Ms. Moursalian is separated from her peers by her empathetic nature, which makes her determined to find lasting solutions; she never gives up on those she treats.
For more than a decade, Ms. Moursalian has dedicated those passions to her work at the Providence Benedictine Nursing Center in Mount Angel, OR. The center, which is comprised of a primary nursing center, an assisted-living facility, a short-stay skilled unit, a child development center, and a home health agency, allows Ms. Moursalian to fully utilize her expertise with physical disabilities, gerontology and occupational therapy. In her role there, her responsibilities include treating patients after they undergo surgery or if they have an acute illness and helping to rehabilitate them so they are comfortable with the facets of daily life. She also coordinates with administrative staff, doctors, nurses, physical therapists and speech language pathologists.
Ms. Moursalian prepared for her endeavors by earning a Bachelor of Science in occupational therapy from Loma Linda University in 2001 and by becoming a certified senior strength trainer. She attributes her success to her education and knowledgeable mentors, who guided her on her path to achieving her goals. If Ms. Moursalian could offer some advice to the younger generations, it would be to consistently go above and beyond to make a difference. Looking to the future, she hopes to continue her studies in the area of stroke rehabilitation.
When Ms. Moursalian isn’t working, she enjoys spending time with her children, reading, and painting.