This Monday (February 20th) is Family Day! Many Canadians will have the opportunity to step away from work and spend some much-needed quality time with their loved ones. Please note that our offices will be closed so our team can do exactly that.

Meaningfully engaging with family, be it your parents, siblings, children, or chosen family, is incredibly important to leading a happy life. According to the Highland Spring Clinic, family time reduces stress, improves mental health, and lengthens life expectancy.

This weekend might also provide an opportunity to visit seniors or family members whose health may impact their mobility.  If you notice any fall risks or if your visit brings questions to mind about a loved one's safety in or around their home, an occupational therapy assessment might be helpful.

As such, we encourage everyone to seize the day and have spend time with your favourite people. Here are some local suggestions to guide your holiday:

Hiking Trails
- Gatineau Park (Gatineau)
- Mer Bleue Bog (Ottawa)
- Pinhey Trail (Ottawa)
- Lemoine Point (Kingston)
- Lyn Valley (Kingston)
- Pembroke Waterfront Park (Pembroke)

Museums
- The Canadian Museum of Nature (Ottawa)
- The Canada Science and Technology Museum (Ottawa)
- Marine Museum of the Great Lakes (Kingston)

Indoor Recreation
- LaserMaxx (Ottawa)
- Merivale Bowling Centre (Ottawa)
- The Fun Zone (Kingston)
- Putt N' Blast (Kingston)

Tomorrow marks the annual International Day of Persons with Disabilities.

Launched by the United Nations in 1992, the occasion celebrates the contributions of people with disabilities, promotes their rights and well-being, and increases awareness, understanding, and acceptance.

Modern OT recognizes the importance of this day’s message of inclusion, equality, and accessibility for all individuals, and works with clients to help them overcome perceived barriers or biases to remain active in their community.

Today, and every day, we should remember the importance of imagining a better future for everyone. The disability rights movement recognizes that people with disabilities are instrumental members of our community who must be represented in the way society is organized.

We invite our readers to check out the resources in this article to access disability-related support and learn more about creating a just world for all.

Join Modern OT and others at this year's Brain Injury Association of the Ottawa Valley (BIAOV) Fall Fundraiser.  Together we are helping brain injury survivors and their families build skills, make connections, and find support in their community! 

Tickets are still available and can be purchased on Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/biaov-15th-annual-fall-fundraiser-tickets-424465065437

When: Wednesday October 19, 2022

Time: 5:00-8:00pm

Where: Bayview Yards, 7 Bayview Station Road, Ottawa (Home of Invest Ottawa)

Dress: Business Casual

Tickets: $100 each

What to expect:  Live music, Raffle, 50/50, food stations and bar.
Please note that there is no ATM on site. The bar and raffle will accept debit and credit purchases, and 50/50 will be cash-only.

Thank you for your support!
See you there!

Modern OT is pleased to announce an exciting new partnership with LifeMark Health Group and Shoppers Drug Mart Inc.

LifeMark is a national leader in health care, offering community rehabilitation, workplace wellness, and medical assessment services to 3 million patients annually. Additionally, having recently become a division of Shoppers Drug Mart, they are part of a growing health network reaching small and large communities across Canada.

Through this partnership, Modern OT will expand our resources and boost accessibility to our existing services while developing new forms of treatment and care. By joining a larger healthcare network, we will be able to participate in national and provincial programs offering occupational therapy, case management, and vocational rehabilitation services. We will also have the opportunity to diversify our programs, share resources with our partners, and better advocate for the needs of our clients.

That said, while much is changing at Modern OT, much is staying the same.  Shannon McGrath and Fiona Smith Bradley stay in their leadership roles with the Modern OT team.   We will still retain the same name, locations, services, and staff, who have worked hard to earn a trusted reputation of client-centred care. As we embark on this exciting new chapter, we invite everyone to stay in touch with us and reach out with any questions or concerns.

We look forward to continuing to work with you.

Thank you.

Often times occupational therapists work in the background of people's everyday life. OTs quietly create ways for individuals to continue to go about their days with as much independence as possible by reducing physical, cognitive, and emotional barriers .

What does that look like? Well, the short answer is "it depends". We ask a lot of questions, and our therapy is indidividualized depending on your answers.
- It depends on who you are and what your day-to-day routine entails. Are you a parent? A student? Do you work? Do you volunteer? Do you garden? Do you cook? Do you socialize?
- It also depends on what types of impairments you have and how they impact your function - does it affect how you move? how you think? how you sleep? how you communicate? how you make decisions?
- It also depends on what your environment is - where do you live? where do you work? where do you shop?
how are these places made accessible to you?

The best way to find out if an how an OT could help you is to ASK. We can be reached anytime, and are happy to chat. Meanwhile, since it's OT month, we will also do our best to be a bit less quiet and start telling more about what we do!

info@modernOT.ca
1-800-554-8118

The provincial government has stated that health care services are permitted to remain open during the pending province-wide shutdown, scheduled to begin December 26, 2020.  Occupational therapists and other regulated health professionals may continue to operate, consistent with current guidelines for regulated health professionals.

Modern OT will continue to provide in-person and telehealth services, while upholding all mandated COVID-19 safety measures, processes and protocols as instructed by the Province and our local public health units.

The team at Modern OT recognizes the challenges that times of uncertainty can place on individuals who are dealing with physical, cognitive and mental health challenges.   We want to assure you that we are here to support you, we have strategies to help you stay on track with your treatment plan, and we will continue to ensure all the prescribed safety measures are in place to keep you, your families, our employees, and our community safe.

These are challenging and uncertain times, but we believe that as a company and community, we can get through this together.

More and more we are seeing the importance of ensuring the health, wellness, and safety of seniors in our communities.  Seeing loved ones adapt to changes in this stage of life can be difficult.

OT is about looking at what a person needs to do and likes to do, and addressing barriers to achieving those goals.   This might be cooking, exercising, driving, volunteering in the community, sending emails, or accessing a family video call.  We understand that each person's priorities are different.

In our present COVID-19 environment, some families are unable to get together and might be wondering how the seniors in our lives are managing. Modern OT has expanded our case management services to develop the Community Care Coordinator role.  The Community Care Coordinator helps to ease uncertainties by providing a primary point of contact for seniors and their family members to manage treatment services, programs and care options.   In consultation with the senior and their family, this can include initial guidance in developing an overall plan of care within the community, to direct support and advocacy for the patient in the event of an emergency or crisis.

On May 26, 2020, Directive #2 from Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health was amended to support the gradual restart of all non-essential and elective services carried out by Health Care Providers.
Modern OT is able to resume offering our services in the home, community, and in our Ottawa, Kingston, and Pembroke clinic locations. 

Thank you for joining Modern OT in an online world of creative therapy.  We would also like to thank Lisa Abbott Moore, Speech Therapist for her generosity of time and talents in the free creative zoom sessions these last many weeks of social distancing.

With the arrival spring, colours are blooming outdoors, Lisa will no longer be leading the Friday afternoon online classes. Lisa encourages all participants to take your imagination to nature's offerings, drawing and painting what you see around you.  Keep talking about it too, as art enhances communication.

Should you have any individual needs, questions, or concerns and would like to speak with Modern OT's speech language pathologist, Lisa Abbott Moore, please feel free to contact our office.

Given the rapid developments of COVID-19 in Canada, Modern OT is reaching out to our clients, colleagues, and referral sources to let you how we are using telehealth to ensure continuation of services while ensuring the health and safety of all.

We would like to assure you that the well being of our clients and our team is top of mind.  We are aware that times like these may cause additional stress for individuals, and we are making all efforts towards continuing important care and lessening the impact of this stress on everyone's health.