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ADVANCE for Occupational Therapy Practitioners is thrilled to welcome you to OT Blogs, part of the Healthcare POV: Blog and Forum Community from ADVANCE. Our new blogs offer posts covering timely questions, advice and opinions about the occupational therapy field. Please take a moment to read our bloggers' bios to learn more about each of them. We have provided tags to assist in locating topics of interest. And feel free to use the comment area after each blog entry to interact with our bloggers. We look forward to hearing more about the occupational therapy field from your Point of View (POV).
LATEST POSTS FROM EACH BLOG

Another extremely positive factor that contributed to Aisling's early development was her first daycare experience -- the Little Buccaneers Student Child Care Center. I was attending East Tennessee State University at the time, working towards finishing up my Bachelor's in English. The University provided an amazing service to their students through ...

 
November 18, 2009 11:49 PM by Wendy Hof of A Pediatric Perspective

One of the most challenging things when it comes to working with a family who has a child who "won't eat" is figuring out how much of it may be due to the child's inability to eat (sensory problems, physical problems, processing disorders, etc) and how much may be due to the child's lack of motivation to eat.  The former is much easier to "fix" than the latter.

If a child has the desire to eat but is ...


 
November 18, 2009 6:51 AM by Katherine Collmer of The OT E-Connect

Hey, all!  Here we are heading toward Thanksgiving and "all you can eat Turkey Day!"  I crack up when people say, "Gosh, I feel so tired after Thanksgiving dinner because of all those tryptophans!"  I can't imagine that it just might be from simply eating too much!  But who am I to judge, especially when I am already thinking about that after-turkey-dinner nap!  But I digress!

My ...


2 comments  
November 14, 2009 10:42 AM by Tim Banish of COTA Thoughts

 

One of the questions I get asked often is why I remain a COTA, and not further my degree to an OTR. This is a question I ask myself, and as much as the change would be nice sometimes, there are many reasons why I remain a COTA.

Of course the educational factor is first. As much as I enjoy school, the things that come with it such as homework, reading, and tests are not as enjoyable.  Attending ...


3 comments  

As I suspected, the week progressed, and things looked much brighter. In fact, I'd even say that come Wednesday, Aisling was practically flourishing.

When I picked Aisling up from the day care center Wednesday afternoon, she was playing at the computer with another little girl in her class. She was in a great mood, and immediately started reciting yet another fun fact she'd learned about some species of snake ...

1 comments  
November 12, 2009 2:37 PM by Jill Glomstad of ADVANCE Outlook: OT

Our Twitter following is growing -- are you on the bandwagon? Our Twitter updates can keep you current on the newest features on our website, the latest news and stories about occupational therapy in the popular media, and issues in health care that affect you and your colleagues. Find us here: http://twitter.com/advanceforot


 
November 12, 2009 7:24 AM by Katherine Collmer of The OT E-Connect

 

Hello, everyone!  I hope you are having a great day!  It's so wonderful to know that each day the sun will rise and that once again, we will be provided with opportunities to connect with someone.  Just this morning, I connected with my mom to wish her a Happy Birthday!  We had visited her in Central New York this past weekend to celebrate her birthday in person.  But I don't think ...


 

I definitely don't think it will be me.

It was just one of those days. I picked up Aisling from her new daycare, and she immediately fell into the usual tears, complaining that she hadn't finished her homework, complaining that the kids at daycare were picking on her. This afternoon, however, I noticed something different - that the other kids in the daycare classroom were asking after her, asking if she were ...

1 comments  
November 9, 2009 8:10 PM by Allie Hafez of A Voice in the OT Wilderness

Back in August, I blogged about my mother and her attitudes about death. Recently, we had the opportunity - if you can call it that - to examine the subtleties of her perspective, and how it is reflected in her advanced directive.

Mom was taken to the ER around 10 p.m. on Saturday ...


1 comments  

When Aisling was two years old, she started going to speech therapy.

I wasn't sure what to expect, at first. The only word she used appropriately with any consistency was the word "no." She'd been evaluated, and she had severe speech delays for her age. Even though she would babble happily for hours, her babble was non-functional, and it was difficult to get her to pay attention to anything to help get her ...


 
November 9, 2009 12:44 PM by Jill Glomstad of ADVANCE Outlook: OT

There's a ton of great content on our website -- so where do you start? We'll periodically blog the five most popular content items on OT Advance online. See what your fellow OTs are reading on www.advanceweb.com/OT!

Tops this week is our new autism ...


 
November 5, 2009 1:29 PM by Katherine Collmer of The OT E-Connect

 

Hi, again!  I'm afraid you caught me in another "I wonder how people can BE that way" mood!  I'll try to keep the frustration from weasling its way into my "voice" today; but it will be difficult.  So, let me tell you my story and get it over with.

As an occupational therapist, I have had the distinct pleasure of working in both the adult and pediatric populations.  It has been ...


 

I wanted to thank everyone for their encouraging comments and posts to my latest entry. It always helps to know that I'm not alone in this, and to hear some reassurance from others who have their own history of experience to pull from. I imagine all parents need validation at certain points in their life, and I'm grateful I have such a strong resource to pull from in the readers of this blog. I appreciate always your ...


 
November 3, 2009 11:14 PM by Wendy Hof of A Pediatric Perspective

One of the challenges of working with toddlers and their independent self-feeding skills is that you are sometimes challenged to work with a toddler who doesn't have the skills to be independent but is at that age where they are striving to do it all themselves anyway.  They want to do everything themselves and are not always welcoming when it comes to hand over hand assistance or, for that matter, any ...


 
November 3, 2009 9:19 AM by Katherine Collmer of The OT E-Connect

 

Happy Fall, fellow bloggers!  Brrrr...I have finally switched the summer clothes (oh, how I love them!) for the warm, cozy fall and winter ones (oh, how I NEED them!).  Actually, to be more accurate, my husband did the switching since our clothes are stored in the attic.  There was a time when I could have done this myself; however, the shoulder is healing rather slowly and I cannot get myself ...


2 comments  
November 2, 2009 10:52 AM by Jill Glomstad of ADVANCE Outlook: OT

Are you on Twitter? ADVANCE for OTs is! Our Twitter updates can keep you current on the newest features on our website, the latest news and stories about occupational therapy in the popular media, and issues in health care that affect you and your colleagues. Find us here: http://twitter.com/advanceforot ...


 

It's often difficult to write about the bad days.


This past week has been one struggle after the other. Aisling has been honestly feeling extremely under-the-weather due in large part to sinus drainage and allergies, but I finally discovered on Wednesday morning that she had been using her illness as an excuse to get out of going to class and to avoid school. She had a full-fledged emotional meltdown on ...


5 comments  
October 30, 2009 10:19 AM by Katherine Collmer of The OT E-Connect

 

Good day, everyone!  I hope you are all keeping warm (no comment from you all in the perpetually warm climates!).  Keeping warm...now there's a challenge!  I have lived in cold climates for the majority of my life, which began in Rome, New York.  I remember the snow blizzard of '62 (that's 1962 for all of you born after 1970!).  The snow banks were so high that we could not see the ...


2 comments  
October 27, 2009 11:49 PM by Wendy Hof of A Pediatric Perspective

Hi All!  Sorry I did not post on Friday - I was a bit under the weather with a stomach bug.  Thankfully it didn't last more than 48 hours but that is one of the "hazards" of working with children for a living - you are bound to catch something every now ...


 

Early Monday morning, Aisling's school nurse called me to let me know she was complaining that her ears were hurting really badly. I tied up a few loose ends at work, made a doctor's appointment for later in the day, and rushed to the school to pick her up. She was sleeping soundly on the cot in the clinic, which was my first clue that she actually was feeling just as bad as she claimed.


A little backstory ...


1 comments  
October 27, 2009 12:03 PM by Jill Glomstad of ADVANCE Outlook: OT

There's a ton of great content on our website -- so where do you start? Each week, we'll blog the five most popular content items on OT Advance online. See what your fellow OTs are reading on www.advanceweb.com/OT!

Tops this week is our webcast ...


 
October 26, 2009 4:44 PM by Allie Hafez of A Voice in the OT Wilderness


"What strategies are occupational therapists interested in mental health going to develop to both assert the field as an effective treatment and practice it as such?"

This question was posed by an OT student in her comments on my assertion that advocacy groups such as the Icarus ...


 
October 26, 2009 9:46 AM by Katherine Collmer of The OT E-Connect

 

And we meet again here in blog land, my friends!  I trust that you and yours are finding this fall season to be calming and peaceful after those busy, hectic days of summer!  (Remember when they used to be called the "lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer"?)  I am using this season to re-connect with family and friends.  Our summer gatherings were wonderful; but they were often squeezed in ...


2 comments  

Several of the companies in Knoxville sponsor a Halloween-themed event each year called Boo at the Zoo, where kids can go trick-or-treating along a "treat trail" set up along the zoo's main routes. There are many other activities available as well, including dancing, party games, and various characters you can have your ...


 
October 22, 2009 3:46 PM by Tim Banish of COTA Thoughts

 

Healthcare reform, the economic depression, reduced insurance reimbursements, Medicare and Medicaid cutbacks, how will this affect the future of the COTA?

            Some people are quite nervous right now, thinking that Obama's healthcare reform will eliminate the COTA position. Others are worried that the reduced reimbursement rates will decrease ...


5 comments  

ABOUT OUR BLOGS

The ADVANCE for Occupational Therapy Practitioners editorial staff will discuss issues in the occupational therapy profession, current events in healthcare and offer their personal views and tips for your enjoyment.

Timothy P. Banish, Sr., COTA, will share his thoughts on important issues facing COTAs such as unrealistic goals in efforts to increase revenue ethics, salaries and job security.

Wendy Spoor-Hof, Pediatric COTA/L will share therapy ideas & strategies, inspirational stories, and offer a place to discuss the challenges and inspiration that comes with working in the pediatric occupational therapy field.

This blog is focused on case management as an advanced and specialized practice of occupational therapy, as well as the challenges of emerging practices. Although Allie's perspective is as an OT in the U.S., she hopes practitioners from other countries will also post comments in order to expand upon the ideas presented.

Andrea Vourtsis, 24, is in her second year of a master's program in occupational therapy at Temple University in Philadelphia. Get her perspective on the OT profession!

Katherine Collmer is an 11-year veteran, with experience ranging from adult rehabilitation to nursing home care and then finally landing in pediatrics. 

The mother of a 10-year-old autistic girl begins a blog to share her story about her daughter's sensory issues, the various treatments she has received, and how "living on the spectrum" has affected and continues to affect everyday life for her family.