02/20/2026
✨ Beyond the Badge ✨
We’re back with another look at the amazing work OTs are doing across the province - meet Dr. Lisa Dennis!
Dr. Dennis has been working as an OT for 26 years delivering services in community home-care, mental health and addictions, school therapy, correctional facilities, Indigenous health, military members, private practice, and as an educator in a private college. She was the first OT to be trained to write Impact of Race and Culture Assessments ™ (IRCAs ™) which are presentencing clinical evaluations for Black people caught in the justice system. She earned her clinical OT doctorate from Boston University where her research focused on the School to Prison Pipeline of Black learners. She has designed a skills-based anti-Black racism workshop to teach cultural competence and cultural humility to all audiences.
An award-winning entrepreneur and innovative thinker, Dr. Lisa is also a national public speaker who advocates for Black health equity. Her work is grounded in a deep commitment to closing health gaps caused by racism and trauma. She created two health and wellness booklets called Black Lives Living Well to empower the Black community in what she calls “cultural rehabilitation”. She is the President and co-founder of the Black Lives Living Well Initiative / Initiative Vies Noires Vivent Bien, a national nonprofit organization. The initiative providesculturally relevant Black health and wellness resources, booklets, videos, webinars, health fairs, anti-Black racism education, advocacy and community-centered merchandise. For more information visit the website at www.blackliveslivingwell.com
