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INDIANAPOLIS -- Graston Technique,® a manufacturer of instrument-assisted soft tissue dysfunction treatment and rehabilitation products, announced May 8 that it has been acquired by a newly formed Indianapolis-based entity. Michael I. Arnolt, president and co-founder of TherapyCare Resources Inc., the owner of GT, and Todd R. Lugar, president and CEO of the acquirer, Graston Technique LLC, said the company will continue to operate in Indianapolis. GT employs approximately 30 people. Graston ...

SAN FRANCISCO -- PresenceLearning, a provider of online speech therapy services for K-12 students, announced May 1 that it was awarded a 2013 Best Educational Software Award (BESSIE Award) from the ComputED Gazette. The 19th annual award program named PresenceLearning the winner of the best Multi-Level Special Education category. "Our online speech therapy platform fills the gaps in special education services," said Clay Whitehead, co-founder and co-CEO of PresenceLearning. "This award reinforces the idea ...

PRESQUE ISLE, ME -- Aroostook Medical Center has added pediatric occupational therapy services to encompass treatment for autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and apraxia, according to an article in the May 9 Bangor Daily News. Officials said that the move will build upon a growing list of pediatric and back-to-school services that they already provide, including routine child visits, immunizations and school physicals. TAMC pediatricians will now be able to refer children to occupational ...

NORTH HAVEN, CT -- Quinnipiac University occupational therapy professor Donna Latella and four of her students are conducting research to determine whether playing with a dog can reduce students' stress before final exams. Aubry, a 3-year-old golden retriever, visited the university's North Haven campus, according to an article in the New Haven (CT) Register. Occupational therapy graduate students Briana Ardolino, Melanie Haversat, Nicole Maiorino and Amanda Silberzahn recorded blood pressure, heart rate, ...

INDIANAPOLIS -- The IU School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences' Department of Occupational Therapy at IUPUI has launched the Cel Hamant Lecture Series. The event, part of the Department's Research and Faculty Development initiative, features distinguished and prominent individuals on topics related to occupational therapy education, research and practice. Hamant, an associate professor emeritus, was program director of the occupational therapy undergraduate program from 1984 to 2004. The inaugural ...

CALEDONIA TOWNSHIP, MI -- Davenport University announced May 16 that it has named Christy Nelson, PhD, OTR/L, as chair of the school's occupational therapy program, according to an article on MLive.com. Nelson, who currently serves as associate professor for the department of occupational therapy at University of Findlay in Ohio, will assume her role at Davenport June 3. "Dr. Nelson brings considerable experience to Davenport University," said Karen Daley, dean of Davenport's College of Health ...

ABINGTON, PA -- Abington Memorial Hospital, a 665-bed acute care teaching hospital with a medical staff of more than 1,100 physicians and 5,600 employees, is celebrating 100 years of operation with a 100th birthday webpage featuring a photo timeline from the last 100 years, a way for the community to share stories, a fun activity for children, and interesting facts about the hospital's history. The page is viewable at www.amh.org/100. In 1912, George W. Elkins, Sr., a prominent citizen and local Abington ...

INDIANAPOLIS -- There may be many health benefits associated with the game of soccer, according to research published in the official journal of the American College of Sports Medicine. The study, in the March 2013 edition of Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise®, shows that soccer training can improve cardiovascular health, lower blood pressure and increase aerobic fitness. "The results of this study show that being physically active through soccer is not only a fun group activity, but ...

BOSTON -- MGH Institute of Health Professions in Boston announced that it will launch an entry-level doctor of occupational therapy (OTD) degree program beginning in June 2014. It will be the first entry-level OTD program in New England and one of only nine in the country, according to an MGH release. On April 30, 2013, the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education approved MGH's application to grant the degree and launch the three-year professional doctoral program. "Our new doctor of occupational therapy ...

MIAMI -- The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) announced May 13 that it has approved a research award to the National Parkinson Foundation (NPF) and Johns Hopkins University to deliver telemedicine care to people with Parkinson's disease in their homes. E. Ray Dorsey, MD, director of the Johns Hopkins Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders Center, is the lead investigator on the project, working with collaborators from across NPF's Center of Excellence network, including Peter ...

GAINESVILLE, FL -- New Day Wellness announced March 29 the opening of a branch office inside the North West YMCA complex in Gainesville, FL. New Day Wellness will offer group exercise covered by insurance at the Gainesville YMCA. The group exercise will include Tai Chi and aquatic programs for balance and for pain and arthritis. New Day Wellness therapists will also offer individualized physical therapy and occupational therapy services at the YMCA and will have deep tissue laser available at this ...

WASHINGTON, DC -- Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced May 9 new funds to help more uninsured Americans enroll in affordable health insurance coverage made available by the Affordable Care Act. Nationwide, funding of approximately $150 million will expand the efforts at community health centers to provide in-person assistance to help enroll uninsured individuals into affordable health insurance coverage. In Pennsylvania, an estimated $4,183,157 is available to support 40 health ...

HOBOKEN, NJ -- WeeCare Occupational Therapy, an OT practice in Hoboken, NJ, announced May 9 a 10-30% discount on registration fees for its summer programs through a new referral program. Parents have the chance to earn a discount of 10% for each referral up to three, or 30% off, per program they register for this summer. Five classes will be offered during two sessions. The first runs July 1-27, and the second from July 29-August 24. The programs meet twice a week. In addition to daytime programs, WeeCare ...

QUINCY, WA -- Quincy Valley Medical Center held a special training and demonstration event May 6 as part of the launch of the hospital's new robotic telestroke program. The program, coordinated through Providence Sacred Heart's stroke center, will directly link physicians at Quincy Valley Medical Center to Sacred Heart's stroke center, allowing Quincy area patients and their physicians access to neurologists 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The program is a partnership between Quincy Valley Medical Center ...

WILMINGTON, NC -- Cape Fear Community College presented May 7 the first Jocelyn Carrasquillo Award of Honor, named in honor of Spc. Jocelyn "Joce" Carrasquillo, an OTA student at Cape Fear Community College and National Guardsman who was called into duty in 2004 to assist with the war effort in Iraq. Spc. Carrasquillo was killed by a roadside bomb in Baghdad two weeks into his deployment, and two months before graduation from Cape Fear's OTA program. The first Jocelyn Carrasquillo Award of Honor was ...