Our Team
APPLE SEPULVEDA
Co-Founder, Occupational Therapist, Lactation Consultant (IBCLC)
Aviril (Apple) Sepulveda is a Filipino-American board-certified pediatric occupational therapist with over two decades of experience. Most of her career was dedicated to pediatric care at a prominent children’s hospital in metropolitan Los Angeles, where she specialized in areas such as infant feeding, swallowing, and infant development. Her extensive qualifications include the AOTA Specialty Certification in Feeding, Eating, and Swallowing (SCFES) and California’s Feeding and Swallowing Certification.
Dr. Sepulveda’s academic background comprises a Doctorate in Occupational Therapy from the University of Southern California, a Master of Science in Occupational Therapy from San Jose State University, and a Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy from Velez College in Cebu, Philippines. She is pursuing her Ph.D. in Translational Health Sciences at George Washington University. Her clinical expertise spans various areas, including occupational therapy interventions for infant development and feeding, pediatric feeding and swallowing in medically complex children, sensory processing, lactation, and maternal and infant mental health.
In addition to her clinical work, Dr. Sepulveda has taken on leadership roles in non-profit organizations, including 2020 Mom (currently called the Policy Center in Maternal Mental Health) and BreastfeedLA. She is a speaker on national and international stages. She has presented at conferences such as the World Federation of Occupational Therapy, the Philippine Association of Occupational Therapists, and various conferences, including the American Occupational Therapy Association and Postpartum Support International. She has also delivered guest lectures at several U.S.-based universities, including the University of Southern California, West Coast University, Salus University, University of Chicago-Illinois, and American International College.
Notably, Dr. Sepulveda was awarded a fellowship from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars Program from 2016 to 2019. This fellowship included grant funding for community-based participatory research to address mental health disparities among Filipino immigrants through parenting programs.
Her research and advocacy efforts are focused on parental mental health, the integration of maternal mental health in early intervention, parenting experiences of NICU parents, and complex care coordination. In pursuing these goals, Dr. Sepulveda co-founded Nurture Collective, an initiative to integrate maternal-infant mental health in early intervention practice to be close to the community and address service disparities in the community.
Her vision for Nurture Collective involves integrating parental mental health into early intervention services for children at risk of developmental delays. To further advance the initiative, she is involved in the state of Maine’s implementation of maternal and infant mental health approaches in their Part C Program.
Read Dr. Sepulveda’s work here:
- Prevention of Behavioral Health Disparities in an Immigrant Community Through Community Partnerships: Creating a Culture of Mental Health – Read the full article.
- Why it makes more sense to care for kids and parents at the same time – Read the full article.
- If pediatricians screen moms for depression, why not occupational therapists? – Read the full article.
- The promotion of positive mental health for new mothers during Covid-19 – Find out more.
- Longitudinal impact of a poverty simulation on healthcare practitioners’ attitudes towards poverty – Find out more.
- Book Chapter: Creating a Culture of Mental Health in Filipino Immigrant Communities through Community Partnerships – Read it here.