MY Bad!! Sorry about that, Pat!! I guess I was being a bit defensive this morning. I have heard so many people throughout my career say that animals in therapy is more appropriate for kids than adults...unfortunately, it was a gut level reaction. Please forgive!! Tammy
pat <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: ohhhh... I didn't mean to imply that animals were kid stuff... only that I would also welcome suggestions that some people might consider being for younger groups! Ron.. I plan to respond to your request for more information on the class... but you asked a question that I can't whip out a quick response to while I'm getting ready for work! Pat At 07:07 AM 2/17/2005, you wrote: >Please do contact me. I would love to be of any help. Just one thing to >remember, many older citizens have pets, so they really don't think of it >as 'kid stuff'. Many look at their pets as companions, especially those >who have lost spouses. It's all about the presentation of the idea. If >you present or suggest that it is childish, they will perceive it as >such. If you present it as an opportunity to enjoy time spent with a "new >friend" many, including older men, really do enjoy it very much. Our >program visited all age groups and many rehab facilties. The animals were >well received by all. > >Try it!! >Tammy > >pat wrote: >I may be contacting you about that Tammy... my supervisor was talking about >incorporating animals at some point. My own dogs are too old and have >health problems, but one day a patient brought her own little dog in a >carrier and the other patients loved it. I only work with adults, and >right now my patients range in age from about 40 to 70... but they love >activities that you would think of as "kid stuff". > >Thanks for the suggestion! > >Pat > >At 08:40 PM 2/16/2005, you wrote: > >Pat, > > > >I can appreciate your frustration with not getting the response from > >groups that you had hoped. I think we become so focused on goals that we > >tend to forget that a good therapist can take nearly any activity and make > >it therapeutic, irregardless of the actual defined goal. > > > >It seems that the standard things that I have observed in a clinic or > >hospital setting include the same things that you have mentioned. Now, > >with my past career eperience, I have something to recommend, because it > >is a great group activity for any age. I incorporate animals into the > >group. The activities that you can do with animals are endless: tossing > >toys, grooming, brushing teeth (my dog loves to have the patients do > >this), walking, reminiscing, etc, etc. etc. I know this is one idea out > >of thousands that are out there, but this is one that seems to transcend > >so many different ages and populations. > > > >If you need some help finding someone in your area, please let me know. I > >used to coordinate an "award winning" program that brought animals into > >hospitals, plus I trained and evaluated people and their pets for such > >work. I have a lot of experience in policy development, infection control > >practices, risk management, and marketing of these programs. It is what I > >did for nearly 10 years BEFORE I became an OT. I now have my own dog come > >to our pediatric clinic. All therapists use her in sessions (PT, OT, and > >speech). The things kids (and adults) will do to interact with an animal > >is amazing!! > > > >Hope this is of help to you! > >Tammy > > > >pat >wrote: > >This past weekend I attended an 8 hr. continuing ed class called > >"Rediscovering Fun in Rehabilitation". It wasn't at all what I had > >expected or wanted, but it was by far the best class I have ever been > >to. It was 8 hrs of sheer fun and laughter and well worth the airline > >tickets and hotel room. I almost hate to admit that it was run by > >a PT. He talked a lot about the history of PT and where PT was > >going, but it was interesting to hear that "they" have many of the same > >concerns we do. I felt kind of like a fly on the wall eavesdropping on a > >secret society. > > > >What I was looking for was fun ideas for the patients... things I could do > >with them in group therapy that would be an active respite from the rest of > >the 8 hr day they put in (it's a pain management program, 40 hrs a week for > >6 weeks). What I got was new ways of thinking for therapists who are on > >the verge of being burned out (or already there) and dread going to > >work. Pay attention Ron... I recently revisited a thread that was almost a > >year old where you talked about losing your passion for OT, and this > >guy is in FLORIDA!! (He goes to several other states though) In spite of > >the fact that he's a PT, the class is hilarious and very relevant to OTs.. > >and it's only $89 for 8 CEUs! If anyone is interested, his name is Michael > >Niss and his website is www.cheapceus.com > > > >Unfortunately, I am in the same position I was before attending that > >class... I still need fresh ideas for group activities. We do things like > >volleyball with a beach ball, hitting a balloon back and forth with > >flyswatters (one of their favorites), ring toss, toss across, and similar > >games. I posted this question on AOTAs listserv but all I got was "What > >are your goals?" and "What do you want to accomplish?" My goal is fun for > >the patients, it's a long day... and it doesn't hurt if there is some > >physical activity thrown in. There must be someone on this list that does > >different group activities and is willing to share? Please? > > > >Pat > > > > > > > >-- > >Unsubscribe? > >[EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > >Change options? > >www.otnow.com/mailman/options/otlist_otnow.com > > > >Archive? > >www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] > > > >Help? > >[EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > > > >Tammy Renaud, MA, OTR > >Jumpstart > >Animals helping kids with the job of living. > >-- > >Unsubscribe? > > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > >Change options? > > www.otnow.com/mailman/options/otlist_otnow.com > > > >Archive? > > www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] > > > >Help? > > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > >-- >Unsubscribe? >[EMAIL PROTECTED] > >Change options? >www.otnow.com/mailman/options/otlist_otnow.com > >Archive? >www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] > >Help? >[EMAIL PROTECTED] > > >Tammy Renaud, MA, OTR >Jumpstart >Animals helping kids with the job of living. >-- >Unsubscribe? > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > >Change options? > www.otnow.com/mailman/options/otlist_otnow.com > >Archive? > www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] > >Help? > [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- Unsubscribe? [EMAIL PROTECTED] Change options? www.otnow.com/mailman/options/otlist_otnow.com Archive? www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] Help? [EMAIL PROTECTED] Tammy Renaud, MA, OTR Jumpstart Animals helping kids with the job of living. -- Unsubscribe? [EMAIL PROTECTED] Change options? www.otnow.com/mailman/options/otlist_otnow.com Archive? www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] Help? [EMAIL PROTECTED]
