''I can explain it to you, Joey, but the understanding is up to you.'' - Dennis the Menace (by H. Ketcham), 11/23/09   What guidelines do you use when seeking informed consent from your clients? I have often thought about the challenges inherent in the concept of informed consent when interacting with and providing services for ...

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 night with severe back pain that turned out to be the symptom of ...

  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 ...

  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; ...

  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 ...

  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. ...

           News from some of the town hall meetings that have been happening around the country reminds me of the Vietnam War protests of the late 60's. Large organized groups of people protesting issues with proposed government actions. There were protesters carrying signs with defaced pictures of ...

            Well, here is Part Two of the typical day of mine. Sorry there were a few blogs between since I promised this as the next one when I wrote Part One. Issues that I thought were more important than one of my boring days got blogged about first though. ...

  Well, I see that Congress has cut another $40 Billion out of Medicare funding. That is for 2010, and over the next ten years the cuts will total $556 Billion! It sure sounds to me like PPS II is here, and it's hitting just as the baby boomer generation just hitting the age of Medicare. ...

           Do you ever have those patients that have an excuse for everything? Why they can't do this, why they can't do that. The ones who have more excuses than Fred Sammons has reachers?             You probably know the type of person I'm ...