Ron, Chris is AOTA's Chief Public Affairs Officer and oversees all of the policy groups plus public relations...I work for her. Heather is a our new media relations person. We thought gettting an OT on a national morning show wasn't too bad for her first week on the job. I'm not a media relations person, but I think they would argue that the tie in to OT has to be related, in this case to the Grip and Grin brochure and handshaking...which obviously involves the upper extremity.
Did you happen to see the video featuring the OT at Ft. Riley, Kansas? It wasn't a long segment but gets at the broader issue of engagement in occupations. The video is about a new program that helps wounded soldiers get internship to get back into society, OT is part of the program. I talked to Tom before the interview...you'll notice that he uses part of our new brand message in the inteview. http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=25858060 8&blogID=423153220 (at about 1:07 in the video) Chuck -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Ron Carson Sent: Monday, August 25, 2008 3:24 PM To: Chuck Willmarth Subject: Re: [OTlist] Do You Agree with This Statement? Chuck, stop busting my bubble.... <BIG smile> As usual, Chuck is correct. The quote IS from AOTA's Grip and Grin brochure. And as Paul Harvey say's, "Here's the rest of the story." I recently received an AOTA e-mail announcing that an OT was going to be on "The Early Show", discussing preventing hand and wrist injuries on the campaign trail. The source of the message was Heather Huhman, AOTA Media Relations Manager. Because I am so against OT being affiliated with UE/hand issues, I promptly replied to Ms. Huhman's message with the following: Great, National exposure about OT's being hand/UE therapists. That's the LAST thing our profession needs. Let's get some media relations about OT helping people engage in occupations, especially those that don't focus on the hand/UE! Apparently, my message was forwarded to Chritine Metzler (who works for AOTA but I'm not sure in what capacity) and she replied to me. Part of her reply was directing me to AOTA's "Grip and Grin" brochure. The quote in the brochure, which I included in the original message of this thread, stood out. I posted it because I'm curious to know if any OT's on this list agree with statement. I'm still curious to know if any OT's see themselves as: "expert in preventing and treating conditions such as repetitive-motion injuries". I know for a fact, that is NOT how I see OT. Thanks..... Ron ----- Original Message ----- From: Chuck Willmarth <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Monday, August 25, 2008 To: [email protected] <[email protected]> Subj: [OTlist] Do You Agree with This Statement? CW> Ron, CW> Looks like that quote was pulled from AOTA's Grip and Grin brochure CW> which is a promotional item rather than an official document. CW> See: CW> http://www.aota.org/Practitioners/Advocacy/Tools/PromotionalItems/39726. CW> aspx CW> Grip and Grin: AOTPAC Chair Amy Lamb Appears on CBS to Talk About CW> Preventing Injuries on the Campaign Trail CW> On Wednesday, August 13, 2008, Cindy McCain, the wife of Senator CW> John McCain, sustained a wrist injury after shaking hands with an CW> enthusiastic supporter. AOTPAC Chair Amy Lamb, OTD, OTR/L, spoke CW> with the CBS Early Show about AOTA's Grip and Grin campaign and how CW> candidates across the country can prevent similar injuries. CW> See the video online at: CW> http://www.aota.org/News/Announcements/GripandGrin.aspx CW> Chuck CW> -----Original Message----- CW> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On CW> Behalf Of Ron Carson CW> Sent: Saturday, August 23, 2008 7:05 AM CW> To: OTlist CW> Subject: [OTlist] Do You Agree with This Statement? >> Occupational therapy practitioners are health, wellness, and >> rehabilitation professionals who are expert in preventing and >> treating conditions such as repetitive-motion injuries resulting >> from excessive handshaking. CW> The above statement is from an official AOTA document. CW> If you are an OT/COTA, do you see yourself as an expert in CW> preventing and treating conditions such as repetitive-motion CW> injuries resulting from hand shaking? CW> Ron CW> -- CW> Ron Carson MHS, OT CW> www.OTnow.com CW> -- CW> Options? CW> www.otnow.com/mailman/options/otlist_otnow.com CW> Archive? CW> www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] -- Options? www.otnow.com/mailman/options/otlist_otnow.com Archive? www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] -- Options? www.otnow.com/mailman/options/otlist_otnow.com Archive? www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]
