Elicia Cruz
Assistant Professor
College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences
PhD (Occupational Therapy) Texas Women's University, MS (Health Education and Promotion) University of Texas Medical Branch, BS (Occupational Therapy) University Texas Medical Branch, OT/L
Location: Inman Health Sciences Building 302B
615-460-5827elicia.cruz@belmont.edu
Biography
Elicia Cruz serves as an Assistant Professor, teaching in the MSOT and OTD programs. She a earned her BS in Occupational Therapy and MS in Health Education and Promotion from the University of Texas Medical Branch, and a PhD in Occupational Therapy from Texas Woman’s University. She has enjoyed a long teaching career, as a faculty member at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston and the University of Tennessee Chattanooga. Dr. Cruz was awarded the Tennessee Excellent Educator Award in 2021.
She has practiced in a variety of settings, including community-based mental health, home health, and skilled nursing rehabilitation. She has developed partnerships in emerging occupational therapy practice settings, in which she collaborated in program development, direct service provision, program evaluation, and professional education. Her research interests include occupational therapy for community health promotion, particularly regarding adults with serious mental illness; family caregiver health promotion; and the role of occupational therapy in primary and integrated care.
Community-based mental health promotion & wellness
Community development
Participatory action research
Higher education
American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA)
Tennessee Occupational Therapy Association (TNOTA)
Excellent Educator Award, Tennessee Occupational Therapy Foundation
Outstanding Leadership Award, University of Texas Medical Branch
Outstanding Community Service Award, University of Texas Medical Branch
Cruz, E., Peyer, K., Womack, B., Myers, B. (2023). Kickstart: A mixed methods analysis of a group activity program for persons with serious mental illness. Sport Social Work Journal, 4, 44-56. https://doi.org/10.33043/SSWJ.4.1.44-56.
Cruz, E. D. (2007). Habits in place: the lives of elders in assisted living. Occupational Therapy Journal of Research, 27(4).
Cruz, E. D. (2006). Elders' and family caregivers' experience of place at an assisted living center. Occupational Therapy Journal of Research, 26(3), 97-107.
Dunn, E., Schulz, E., Schulz, C., Honaker, D., Wiley, A. (1999). The importance of scholarly debate in occupational therapy literature. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 53(4), 398-400
Caregivers of Persons with Dementia Report Poorer Physical and Mental Health, AOTA Annual Conference (April 2023)
Promoting Critical Thinking in Online Courses; Workshop TNOTA Conference (September 2021)
Human Trafficking as an Emerging Practice Area: An Innovative Strategy for Addressing the Occupational Needs of Survivors of Complex Trauma; TNOTA Conference (September 2019)
State of the Art in Mental Health Assessment: Incorporating the Recovery Model in Your Practice. TNOTA Conference (September 2019).
Human Trafficking as an Emerging Practice Area: An Innovative Strategy for Addressing the Occupational Needs of Survivors of Complex Trauma, AOTA Annual Conference (April 2019).
Home Modifications for Aging in Place: An Overview of Products, Evidence, and Funding. TNOTA Annual Conference (September 2019).
Mental Health Promotion through Community Development: How to Employ Community-Campus Partnerships to Integrate Practice, Education, and Research, AOTA Annual Conference (April 2018).
Reflections from a Physician & OT Intern on an Internship in Primary Care: How Their Experience Can Inform the Development of OT in Primary Care, AOTA Annual Conference (April 2018).
Incorporation of Health Promotion in Everyday OT Practice, TNOTA Annual Conference (September 2017)
A Community Development Approach to Occupational Therapy Mental Health Services through Community-Campus Partnerships, TNOTA Annual Conference (September 2017)
The Benefits of Therapeutic Crafts on the Development of Leisure Coping Skills Among Adolescents with Substance Use Disorder, TNOTA Annual Conference (September 2017)
Applying the Transtheoretical Model to Occupational Therapy Intervention for Adolescents with Substance Use Disorder, TNOTA Annual Conference (September 2017)
Faculty Grant, Competency Development in the Promotion of Critical Thinking and Intrinsic Motivation in Online Coursework, $600, UTC
High-Impact Practices Development Grant, $1328.88, UTC
SEARCH Grant, Faculty Advisor; Examination of the Revised Global Life Skills Assessment; $995
PRSA Grant; Faculty Advisor; The Benefits of Therapeutic Crafts on the Development of Leisure Coping Skills Among Adolescents with Substance Use Disorder; $450; UTC
Faculty Research Grant; Principal Investigator; $1459.21; The Benefit of Occupation-Based Interventions on the Self-Perception of Occupational Performance of Adolescents with Substance Use Disorder; UTC Faculty Senate
East Texas Geriatric Education Center (ETGEC); Discipline Coordinator; $1.2 Million; US Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources & Services Administration (contributor)
Partnerships for Healthy Communities; $417,000; US Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources & Services Administration; Project Director
The Adaptive Significance of Family Caregivers’ Visits to a Residential Care Facility; Principal Investigator; $3,350; University of Texas Medical Branch, Sealy Center on Aging; Principal Investigator
Learning Through Community Service: A Health Promotion Project; Moody Foundation; Project Coordinator; $80,000