the aquatic therapist

ATRI (Aquatic Therapy & Rehab Institute) Celebrates Winners in 2008

 

Marty Biondi, PT, CSCS, ATRIC, has been named the recipient of the 2008 Aquatic Therapy Professional Award. The award was presented at the 16th Aquatic Therapy Symposium, July 3rd in Fort Myers, FL by the Aquatic Therapy & Rehab Institute (ATRI).

Tsunami Spirit Awards were presented to Melissa Lewis, MPT, ATRIC, NCCARD, Mick Nelson, BS, MS, and Sue Nelson, BS, ATRIC.

Aquatic Therapy Dolphin Awards were presented to SFC Vincent Fanning, US Army Retired, and Bess Maxwell, PhD, PT.

The Aquatic Therapy Professional Award recognizes outstanding professionalism and contributions to the aquatic therapy industry.

Previous Aquatic Therapy Professional Award winners include:
Gwen Garrett, MA, OTR/L; Lynette Jamison, MOT, OTR/L; Peggy Schoedinger, PT; Igor Burdenko, PhD; Alison Osinski, PhD; Andrea Salzman, MS, PT; Johan Lambeck, PT; Bruce Becker, MD, Paula Briggs, MS, ExPhys, ATRIC; Ann Wieser, MS, PhD, ATRIC; Dori Maxon, PT, PCS, MEd, ATRIC; Mary Essert, BA, ATRIC; Luis Vargas, PhD, PT, ATRIC; and Mary Wykle, PhD, ATRIC

To read more...

Watsu® for orphans: What better way to celebrate aquatic therapy worldwide?

What better way to celebrate World Watsu® Week (April 20-26, 2009) than to donate water therapy sessions for children living in orphanages and childcare institutions?

Watsu providers from all over the world (Brazil, Haiti, France, Great Britain, USA, Lithuania, Poland, Hungary, Thailand and Africa) are joining in.

Watsu for Orphans was initiated by Basia Szpak Borst, a Watsu practitioner and instructor from the Netherlands, and is supported by an Endowment Fund.

This project is an opportunity for orphanages to learn about this ground-breaking water therapy (Watsu) and to benefit from the installation of mobile pools donated by the Endowment Fund wherever technical possibilities allow their installation.

The long-term objective of the donation is to ensure continuous presence of Watsu practitioners and therefore enable participating institutions to integrate Watsu into their existing therapeutic and pedagogical programs.

But why water for these children?

As just one example, look to Bulgaria where the Ministry of Health is monitoring a 10-year follow-up of babies from an orphanage. They found that these children had a greater chance to be adopted because of a 20-minute a day medical water training.

Quick links for more info:

Watsu for Orphans newsletter update (newsletter is in English)

Website - Watsu for Orphans

Videoclips - Watsu sessions

Watsu for Children book chapter

Finding the perfect host location for aquatic therapy trainings in 2009: Are you THE ONE?

[First published 3/07]

We are looking for the perfect host locations for seminars in 2009. Are you THE ONE?

One of the major frustrations of my year is tracking down the perfect location to hold all of our aquatic therapy seminars.

You wouldn't think it could be such a headache. There are thousands of pools in the U.S. We know about almost all of them. And yet, I would give my first born child for a warm water (92-94 degree) pool with loads of water in the 3' to 4' depth.

Most of the work that happens in aquatic therapy happens at chest- to waist-level water. So, we need a pool that will fit between 25 and 30 people in the same depth at the same time.

Argghh.

Laurie, our office manager, bless her soul, just wants to cry sometimes. It starts with an innocent comment on my part, say something like "Let's hold Peggy's next seminar in South Carolina."

She smiles (a bit tightly I must say) in my general direction and proceeds to the phone lines. Days later, she calls me with an update. It goes something like this.

"I found a pool in Greenville."

"Great," I exclaim (excitement evident in my voice. I like to be supportive to Laurie so she doesn't make my work world fall apart).

"It's almost functional."

"Umm..."

"The hurricane, you know."

"Ahhh."

"Three sides of the pool are operational. They plan on having the fourth up and running by the time we want to host."

"Uh. Do you think it's smart to plan a seminar in a pool that doesn't -- now, I realize I'm being picky here -- have the capacity to hold water?"

This is the point where Laurie starts getting uppity. Silence ensues until one of us (read: me) caves.

"Sure, sure. Sounds perfect." And voila! We've found our next host site.

Then we bite our nails until the pool is actually up and running.

So take a moment, have mercy on us, and let us know about that perfect pool at your place.

Leave a comment here on the blog about your pool -- or email us at ARN.

Laurie will thank you.

Warm water regards, Andrea Salzman

Adapted scuba diving for disabled veterans

Thanks to a program at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, disabled soldiers are learning to scuba dive and explore the wonders of our undersea world. Known as "SUDS" (Soldiers Undertaking Disabled Scuba), the innovative training and certification program is helping wounded warriors from Iraq and Afghanistan to experience life from below sea level.

"It's the most rewarding project I have ever been involved in," says John W. Thompson, president of the SUDS board of directors. He's a certified diving instructor who sees the ocean as a great equalizer.

"Many things are just easier to do in the water with these types of injuries," he says. To prepare himself for the task of teaching severely wounded soldiers how to dive, Thompson enrolled in a training program in Florida offered by the Handicapped Scuba Association.

Thompson describes SUDS, which launched in February 2007, as "part rehabilitation, part confidence-building (and) part adventure for these wounded warriors. I'm really inspired by the soldiers at Walter Reed."

Read more on this story...

Ask ARN: Must therapy pools supply lifeguards during aquatic therapy sessions?

The Aquatic Resources Network gets questions from clinicians each day. We think everyone should learn from the answers!

 

Question: What kind of policy should we have regarding posting a lifeguard on duty at the pool? Are therapeutic pools held to the “public pool” standard?

Answer: There are over 100 bathing codes in effect in the U.S. and no two of them have identical wording concerning lifeguards. In most states, therapy pools are considered "public" pools and are subject to all the same codes and regulations as any other public pool in the state.

Some states have a “semi-public" or "special pool" or “therapeutic pool supervised by a licensed medical practitioner" category. Since surveillance requirements vary from state to state depending on the categorization, each practitioner should make himself aware of the requirements which pertain to his state or locality.

Regardless of whether or not a state code requires that lifeguards be posted, the facility is still required to provide a safe environment, and to provide rescue assistance and necessary First Aid.

The prevailing standard that public pools must hold to includes the following requirements:

• The standard of care in the industry (in the U.S.) is the "10/20 Supervision Rule". Trained and qualified lifeguards must be posted in a way that they can observe and scan their entire area of responsibility once every 10 seconds, and respond to and manage an emergency situation within another 20 seconds.
• Lifeguards should be properly dressed in uniforms (provided and paid for by the employer) and readily identifiable to patrons.
• At least two certified or licensed lifeguards should be in attendance at all public pools at all times the pool is in operation.
• Lifeguards should have no duties to perform other than the close general supervision of participants in water contact activities.
• Lifeguards should be alert, rotate to a new position at least once every 40 minutes, and be given frequent relief breaks from surveillance duties.
• The number of lifeguards should be adequate for the activities being conducted, the size and shape of the facility, and environmental conditions which might limit the ability to provide supervision.
• Lifeguards should be at least 18 years old, medically fit, have good eyesight, be physically capable of meeting the demands of the job, possess current certifications or licenses (in lifeguarding, CPR, and First Aid) from a recognized training agency, have adequate specific training for the facility, and be qualified and practiced in emergency procedures and other job aspects including use of rescue equipment (a minimum of four hours/month inservice training).

Source: Osinski A. Aquatic Therapy Listserv. Aquatic Consulting Services: San Diego, CA; 2001. For more information: Aquatic Consulting Services, Phone (619) 224-3100, Hotline (900) 446-6075 x 820. Web: www.AlisonOsinski.com

A toddler slips out of the house and heads for the family swimming pool. The boy falls in the water, and sinks, but something amazing happens next. Instead of drowning, he flips on his back, floats to the top and cries for help.

Too good to be true? You decide! Watch the video making the rounds on the Internet.

An organization called Infant Swimming Resource is teaching baby aquatic survival skills and drowning prevention classes to infants as young as 6 months old.

Harvey Barnett Ph.D. and his wife JoAnn have developed Infant Swimming Resource (ISR) into a nationally recognized program with a specific mission: prevent childhood drowning through specialized survival training. According to their statistics, since ISR’s inception in 1967 there have been more than 1700 aquatic survivals witnessed and 783 survivals unwitnessed.

Read more on becoming an instructor.

Non-PTs billing for PT services. Is it allowed? Part 3

At Aquaticnet.com, we often get the following question:

Can my exercise physiologist/ athletic trainer/ personal trainer/ massage therapist work with clients and bill for services under my physical therapist's license?

It's such a hot topic, we'll discuss it in 3 parts. (See prior postings for Part 1 and part 2)

PART 3:
Many clinics believe that if a non-PT provider is "certified" in aquatic therapy, then this provider should be able to provide aquatic therapy services. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Aquatic therapy "certification" has no legal bearing. The states do not recognize it, nor do insurance companies. It does not make you qualified or legally permitted to practice aquatic therapy. If you are not already a therapist, certification does not make you one.

In fact, the "Aquatic Therapy and Rehab Industry" certification which existed until 2007, went bust in Dec. 2007 and is no longer supporting its recipients. More on this.

 

Aquatic therapy certification -- Is there a future in it?

The beauty of aquatic therapy is that it is multidisciplinary.

Unfortunately, that same phenomenon becomes the albatross of anyone attempting to offer an aquatic therapy certification.

From the start, the aquatic certification process has waded through difficult waters. For example:

1. If an aquatic therapy certification is open to multiple providers, how do you address the issues of non-overlapping scopes of practice?

Not all providers are allowed to do all things to patients on land -- and certainly, this truth does not evaporate at the water's edge. If the same certification is to be offered to a dozen disciplines, how do you construct a viable certification?

2. If an aquatic therapy certification is limited to a single provider, how will you find enough providers to make a certification process economically viable?

Take, for instance, the field of physical therapy. There are approximately 2,000 PTs/PTAs who are interested enough in the field to pay $45 to join the Aquatic Physical Therapy Section of the American Physical Therapy Association each year. This represents less than 2% of all PT professionals in the US.

Even if all 2000 therapists elected to sit for an aquatic physical therapy certification exam this year, what about next year? And what of other professions with even smaller numbers?

3. If an aquatic therapy certification is offered to the public, what makes that certification valid? From whence comes its authority?

From the start, many professionals chose to not sit for the exam (note: approximately 700 people sat for certification over its history). These individuals did not believe the Aquatic Therapy & Rehab Industry Certification process had enough "chops" to warrant the time or effort.

Why? Certainly, the exam had gone through many years of vetting by dozens of qualified individuals. However, the exam was not recognized by NOCA's National Commission for Certifying Agencies, nor was it recognized as a "permit to practice" by the states or insurance companies. It was a certification without a standing.

Almost a decade after its inception, the very first certification offered to the aquatic therapy industry is hitting the dust. It was a valiant effort by truly committed individuals, but it was unable to overcome industry obstacles.

Any future certification must hurdle even more obstacles than its predecessor.

First, such a certification must establish itself as a long-term contender. Clinicians "burned" by the dissolution of the ATRI certification will be hesitant to plunge into untested waters a second time.

Second, it must address clinician's natural concerns over a multidisciplinary certification.

Third, it must be recognized by NOCA or an equivalent external body.

And lastly, it must offer some value in exchange for payment. A certification means nothing unless it brings the provider more -- more employment opportunity, more money, more prestige, or more options.

Advice on choosing an aquatic therapy certification

Are you currently certified in aquatic therapy and rehabilitation by the ICATRIC?

Well, as of this fall, ICATRIC is kaput, so you must look elsewhere.

In the confusion following this breaking news, there have been many suggestions from industry professionals. So, what should you do to prevent the loss of your certification?

Laree Shanda, former Director of Operations of ICATRIC, has issued an additional public post to the Aquaticnet listserv.

She has made some suggestions about how/why/if to transfer your credentials:

Here are some excerpts: (read the entire document here)

In choosing a credible certification, please consider the following:
1) Did the organization conduct a Job Skills Analysis to develop their assessment tools.

2) Does the organization engage in direct educational efforts that "feed" the certification.

3) Has the certification been tested for reliability and validity.

4) Is the certification established to protect the provider or the consumer?

5) Look for a certification that accurately references NOCA - the National Organization of Competency Assurance.

   

Developments in ICATRIC...

A public letter from Doug Kinnaird posted to the Aquaticnet listserv on August 14, 2007.

NOTICE TO THE AQUATIC THERAPY AND REHABILITATION COMMUNITY:

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

I have submitted my resignation, effective immediately, from the position of Board Chair of the International Council for Aquatic Therapy and Rehabilitation Certifications (ICATRIC).

Laree Shanda, who assumed responsibility for the organization in 2001, is the sole individual with access to ICATRIC records and assets. Please direct any further inquiries to Ms Shanda at lshanda@comcast.net or support@icatric.org.

Thank you for the opportunity to serve you for the last three years. I have enjoyed our friendships and hope that, in some small way, that my efforts advanced the growth and development of the aquatic therapy field and the dedicated professionals that practice in it.

Cordially and Collegially,

Doug

Douglas W Kinnaird, NCTMB, ATRIC
e-mail: aquadoug@usa.net