Have You Heard?...
At our 2011 Annual Meeting in Las Vegas, our new President, Dr. Dutkowsky, rappelled down the 53 story tower of the Rio Hotel. See the video here!
Got Transition? is a national resource for health care professionals, families, youth, and state policy makers focusing on a young adult's transition from pediatric to adult health care. This site serves as the basis for an information exchange about health care transition, particularly as pertaining to youth with special health care needs. Transition tools and tips and other resources are available under each of the main categories of Youth, Family, Providers and States.
This resource can also be found on the Life Span Care Committee's page and the Web Sites of Interest page on the AACPDM website.
AACPDM is pleased to announce that applications for our 2012 International Scholarship will be open until January 31, 2012. The International Scholarship is open to professionals outside of the US and Canada, and provides assistance to attend the 2012 Annual Meeting, which will be held September 12-15, 2012, in Toronto, Canada. Please visit our Scholarship page for more information and eligibility requirements.
Please note that we are unable to accept applications after January 31. All pieces of the application must be submitted by January 31, including both letters of reference.
The November 2011 issue of Child: Care, Health and Development is a special issue focusing on transition to adulthood. The publisher has made the issue freely available via their website till 31 December 2011.
Please feel free to read this special edition at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cch.2011.37.issue-6/issuetoc
CME/CEU emails for the 2011 Annual Meeting were sent to all attendees on October 31. Instructions were included to claim your credits online. For attendees of previous meetings, the process will be extremely similar to the last three years. If you have not received an email from us with instructions on claiming your CME/CEU, please let us know.
AACPDM has recently begun to tweet through our Twitter account. To set up your own Twitter account, please visit our Twitter page. On the right side of the page, you will see a place to sign up for Twitter. Simply enter your information and choose a username on the next screen. You will receive an email to confirm your Twitter account. When you click the link in the email to confirm, you will automatically be following AACPDM on Twitter.
AACPDM would also like to invite our members to join us on our Facebook page. You will need to have a Facebook account, and request to join the group, but we are happy to approve all AACPDM members to do so! Please note that members of the AACPDM Facebook group will not have access to your other information on Facebook, such as pictures and status updates, unless you add them individually as friends.
We are pleased to announce that the 2011 Annual Meeting has set an all-time attendance record for the AACPDM, with 955 people registered! We congratulate all who attended for being part of this outstanding event in AACPDM Annual Meeting history. We'd also like to thank the presenters for all for their hard work on their presentations, which helped to make this meeting so successful.
We are pleased to announce that the AACPDM 66th Annual Meeting will be held September 12-15, 2012 at the Westin Harbour Castle in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. We are especially excited to install Maureen O'Donnell, MD, who is Canadian, as the President of AACPDM at our Toronto meeting. To learn more about Toronto, visit http://www.toronto.ca/about_toronto/index.htm.
Advance Registration for the AACPDM Annual Meeting will be closing on Wednesday, September 14 at 11:59pm CST. As always, our Breakfast with the Experts Sessions are filling up quickly. As of September 2, Breakfast Sessions 1-10 inclusive are closed: Session 11 still has room. Please note that Instructional Courses and Pre-Conference courses have no maximum and will not close.
EMBC2011
Boston, MA
August 30 - September 3, 2011
http://embc2011.embs.org/
Title: An Introduction to Ultrasound Guidance for Botulinum Toxin Injections
Lecturer: Katharine Alter, MD
Date: Thursday, August 18, 2011
Time: 12:00 pm ET / 11:00 am CT / 10:00 am MT / 9:00 am PT
Katharine Alter, MD, has served as a pediatric and adult physiatrist in the Baltimore, Maryland, and Washington, DC, area for 20 years. Dr Alter is currently the Medical Director for Rehabilitation Programs at Mount Washington Pediatric Hospital in Cheverly, Maryland. She is board certified in pediatrics, physical medicine and rehabilitation, and electrodiagnostic medicine. She also holds a special certificate in pediatric rehabilitation.
Dr. Alter is also a senior clinician/scientist at the National Institutes of Health in the Eunice Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and is Medical Director of the Functional and Applied Biomechanics Section of the Rehabiltation Medicine Department in the Clinical Center. Dr. Alter is the co-investigator on a number of studies investigating spasticity, movement disorders, proprioception, virtual functional anatomy/MRI, and the use of botulinum toxin in the treatment of movement disorders. She has numerous peer reviewed publications related to these projects and others.
Dr. Alter's areas of special interest are the origin and treatment of upper motor neuron syndromes, movement disorders, neonatal brachial plexus injuries, and pediatric neuromuscular disorders.
Space is Limited. AACPDM Members are FREE.
Reserve your Webinar seat now at: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/570598817
The AACPDM Grand Rounds are sponsored by Mac Keith Press.
On August 13, 2011, the 4th Annual Cerebral Palsy Conference will highlight the latest medical and therapeutic interventions and services being offered by the specialists and experts of the comprehensive Cerebral Palsy Program at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. The conference program, which includes experts from pediatric neurosurgery, orthopaedics, ophthalmology, physical medicine & rehabilitation, and therapy is intended for both therapists and other healthcare providers working with children that have CP, as well as families. Please see the conference brochure for more details.
Association of Children's Prosthetic-Orthotic Clinics (ACPOC)
2012 Annual Meeting
4/11/2012 - 4/14/2012
Banff, Alberta, Canada
Click here for the AACPDM 65th Annual Meeting Preliminary Program and Registration information Breakfast sessions have a maximum capacity of 50 people each, and there are just 100 tickets available in the AACPDM block for The Beatles™ LOVE™ by Cirque du Soleil® at The Mirage. Register early as these events are sure to sell out!
The selected recipient of the award will receive $1,000.00 USD to be used toward educational/vocational pursuits, or toward a designated community service project or organization. Recipient will also receive a crystal award, certificate, and all expenses paid travel to the AACPDM meeting for him/her and a companion, caregiver, or personal care attendant. Notices will be sent out to local paper of recipient and of all those nominated.
Deadline for nominations will be June 17th with a final decision to be made by the end of July. Nominations for the 2011 award are now closed.
Adults with CP and other pediatric onset disabilities often face challenges finding providers interested and trained to care for their issues. The providers on this list of AACPDM members have all indicated that they have interest and experience with adults. If you are an AACPDM member who is a care provider for adults with pediatric onset disabilities, and would like to be included on this list, please send an email to ehurvitz@umich.edu. If you are not an AACPDM member, please consider joining! There are many benefits, and many courses and presentations at our Annual Meetings related to the care of adults.
Visit the Exhibitor Prospectus for Exhibitor/Sponsor information and applications. We suggest that you or your organization may want to register for a booth space early as we expect to sell out!
Thank you to all who submitted abstracts for the AACPDM 65th Annual Meeting. The AACPDM received a record number of submissions with a total of 449 abstracts! We expect to have an excellent variety of sessions and courses.
The deadline for abstract submissions for the AACPDM 65th Annual Meeting has been extended to Tuesday, February 1 at 11:59 pm EST. Please visit the Call for Papers for more information on the AACPDM 65th Annual Meeting!
The 2011 Workforce Recruitment Program for College Students with Disabilities database is now available to help federal and private-sector employers recruit workers with disabilities. Federal officials can register and search for candidates who meet their hiring needs. Private-sector employers can search the program's database through the Employer Assistance and Resource Network or by calling 866-327-6669.
Please help us promote the Annual Meeting by including the 2011 Save the Date slide in your presentations.
The AACPDM is now accepting abstracts for the 65th Annual Meeting. Click here for the Call for Papers and more information on the AACPDM 65th Annual Meeting!
The deadline for abstract submission is Monday, January 31, 2011 at 11:59 pm EST.
Join Jonathan Mink, MD PhD, and AACPDM on Thursday, November 18, 2010 for an online Grand Round lecture on DBS for Dystonia in Childhood. More information and registration information is on the Grand Rounds page.
Talent Has No Boundaries: Workforce Diversity Includes People with Disabilities: 2010 NDEAM Message from Assistant Secretary Kathy Martinez
America has been celebrating the contributions of workers with disabilities since creating a National Physical Disability Employment Awareness Week in 1945. Since then, our celebration has been expanded to a month and now emphasizes the contributions of people with all disabilities from all ethnic and racial groups.
It has always been important to celebrate the important contributions of workers with disabilities. But this year we have even more to celebrate, as President Obama is creating change that we can believe in for jobseekers and workers with disabilities. The President signed a landmark Executive Order on July 26 that calls on all Federal Government executive departments and agencies to create goals and action plans for increasing the numbers of people with disabilities hired and to improve retention and return to work of Federal employees with disabilities.
Continue reading and find more information at the Office of Disability Employment Policy website.
Thank you for attending the AACDPM 64th Annual Meeting. We hope you enjoyed the program and events in Washington, DC. Please take a brief moment to provide your feedback on this 2-page survey. The link to the electronic survey is http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/KLDZ7LB
Your responses are vital in assisting the AACPDM improve future Annual Meetings. We appreciate your participation.
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An email with instructions on how to claim your CME/CEU credits from the AACPDM 64th Annual Meeting was sent to all Annual Meeting attendees on October 7. The email included your personalized passkey, which you will need to claim your CME/CEU certificate or your Certificate of Attendance. The website to claim your certificate is also linked in the email. If you have any questions or difficulty, please send an email with your name and the email address that you registered with to AACPDM at info@aacpdm.org.
Did you learn so much at the AACPDM 64th Annual Meeting that you're having trouble remembering everything? Were you not able to attend all of the sessions that you would have liked? Perhaps you weren't able to attend the meeting at all. You are in luck! Recordings of the sessions are available through this order form.
There will be a special issue of Child: Care, Health and Development in 2011 devoted to papers on transition to adulthood, an important ‘21st Century’ child/youth health issue. We welcome contributions addressing ‘transition’ as a gradual process rather
than a one-time event. Topics will include the psychosocial and educational/vocational aspects of adolescence and transition, in addition to models for continuing healthcare in adulthood. Empirical papers, both quantitative and qualitative in method, and systematic reviews are welcome. Please click here for more information.
Register for the AACPDM 64th Annual Meeting by next Wednesday, August 18, 2010 and you will be entered in a random drawing to win one of three $100 Marriott gift cards! That’s right – 3 people will each win a $100 gift card just for registering early.
Not only will you be entered into the drawing to win one of the 3 gift cards, you will receive the Early Bird Registration rate if you register by August 18th, 2010 at 11:59 pm Central Time. Click here to register online for the Early Bird Rate and to enter the drawing for a gift card.
Marriott Gift Cards are valid at all Marriott brands worldwide and cover anything charged to the room folio. In addition to room charges, the Gift Card can be used to pay for any Marriott-owned-and-operated services in the participating hotels. Gift Cards are even good for merchandise purchased on ShopMarriott.com.
Registration Rates for the Annual Meeting will increase after August 18, 2010. Click here to register. If you have already registered for the Annual Meeting, you will automatically be entered in the drawing. For more information on the AACPDM 64th Annual Meeting, view the Preliminary Program at http://www.aacpdm.org/meetings/2010/program.php
The complete Instructional Course descriptions for the AACPDM 64th Annual Meeting are now available on the AACPDM Annual Meeting website. Click here to see a listing. Instructional Courses are 2 hours in length, cost $50 each, and have no limit on attendance.
All attendees that register for at least ONE instructional course will receive a USB flash drive containing all course hand-outs submitted by August 15th.
AACPDM 64th Annual Meeting attendees and their guests are invited to attend a special session on the main campus of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda MD. The agenda for this session will include informational and question and answer sessions with the leading intramural researchers and extramural program directors in the two NIH Institutes that conduct and fund research in pediatric disability: NICHD (National Institute on Child Health and Human Development) and NINDS (National Institute on Neurological Disease and Stroke).
Speakers will include Dr. Constantine Stratakis, a geneticist who heads the Intramural research program in NICHD, Ralph Nitkin, the Program Director for Extramural Funding at the National Center for Medical Rehabilitation Research within NICHD, and Mark Hallett and Leo Cohen, two world renowned neuroscientists and movement disorder specialists. We will also have a talk describing the NIH Toolbox project and in particular how it relates to the populations we serve.
This session will be held on Tuesday, September 21, 2010 from 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm in the NIH Clinical Center on the main Bethesda campus. At the end of the day, there will be a brief reception for both speakers and attendees and an optional tour of the NIH Clinical Center, the world’s largest Research Hospital.
If you would like to attend, we ask you to register early for security reasons and reserve your seat with $10. This will be returned to you in the form of a Metrocard that can be used to travel to the NIH from the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel or wherever you are staying. Register for this event on the Annual Meeting Registration Form found at http://www.aacpdm.org/meetings/2010/registration.php.
For more information, please contact info@aacpdm.org.
Keep up to date with the United States Bone & Joint Decade! The Bone and Joint Decade is a global, multi-disciplinary initiative targeting the care of people with musculoskeletal conditions--bone and joint disorders. Its focus is on improving your quality of life as well as advancing the understanding and treatment of those conditions through research, prevention and education. Bones, and the joints that create function and movement, are connected by muscle and ligaments. Their state of health and how they enable you to lead an active and healthy life is what the Decade aims to improve.
Click here to read newsletters from the US Bone & Joint Decade.
INDIVIDUAL GRANTS — OREF began soliciting applications July 9 for project year 2011 funding which spans 17 research grant categories. Applicants from residents to young investigators who have not yet received a major NIH grant are eligible. In addition, there are several grant opportunities for members of specific specialty organizations: AAHKS, ASES, AFSH, JRGOS, POSNA, and RJOS. Application deadlines are September 15.
INSTUTIONAL GRANTS — Applications for institutions to apply for funding under the OREF Clinician Development Program will be posted in late July at www.oref.org/cdp and due to OREF October 13. Thanks to generous support from industry, funds will be available for fellowship grants in eight specialty categories, plus residency enhancement and continuing medical education grants.
For more information on both types of grants, please visit OREF at http://www.oref.org/site/PageServer?pagename=OP_Update
On Tuesday, September 21, 2010, the Advocacy Committee of the AACPDM will host an exciting, educational and rewarding activity that will give members an opportunity to personally ask lawmakers to focus on the policies and funding that affect our patients’ lives. This full day activity will begin with training and logistics about visiting Congress and their staff. Participants will be given talking points that will introduce the AACPDM policy goal (increased research funding for CP and other developmental disabilities) to The Hill.
The morning session will take place at the Washington DC offices of the American Academy of Pediatrics located at 601 Thirteenth Street NW, Suite 400 North, Washington DC 20005. The training will be conducted by AAP staff members who are very experienced in training groups and taking them to The Hill. Lunch is on your own. In the afternoon we will visit key members of Congress and their staff to introduce our policy goal. We will be divided into small groups for the visits. Each group will leave behind a prepared document with our key talking points. The day will begin at 8:00 am or 8:30 am and conclude around 5:00 pm.
You should participate if:
· You are interested in influencing policy-making on a national level
· You are interested in learning how to talk to legislators
· You want to try to make a difference in Washington for children with CP
Cost to participants:
· Transportation to the training and to The Hill
· Lunch
· There is no registration fee.
For more information or to RSVP please respond to Lisa Thornton at lthorntonmd@gmail.com with “Day on the Hill” in the subject line with the following information:
· your name
· your zip code (to identify your lawmakers)
· the names of your Congressperson and Senators if you know them.
THIS SESSION IS FULL, however Dr. Thornton is accepting names for a waiting list.
Nominees for the 2010 Corbett Ryan Pathways Pioneer Award should be persons representing excellence in pursuit of and quality of life who also happens to live with a personal physical challenge. Individuals should be nominated by someone close to them: a physician, therapist, parent, mentor, teacher, friend or colleague. Nominators should notify the individual that they are being nominated. There is no age restriction on the award. For further details, including how to submit a nomination, please click here.
Registration for the AACPDM 64th Annual Meeting is now open! The meeting will be held in Washington DC, September 22-25 at the Marriott Wardman Park hotel. We encourage you to register early to ensure that the sessions you want to attend are still available. The Preliminary Program for the 64th Annual Meeting is now also available, to assist you with making your course selections.
Management of the Hip in Cerebral Palsy
September 20-21, 2010
Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children - Wilmington, DE
Hosted by Freeman Miller, MD
Co-sponsored by the Pediatric Orthopedic Society of North America
Description:
This meeting will build on the first International Meeting on Management of the Hip in Cerebral Palsy held March 10-11 in Liverpool, England. The goal of this meeting is to expand the discussion and include all participants who have an interest in this area. It will be held immediately preceding the AACPDM 64th Annual Meeting in Washington DC.
Objectives:
On completion of this program, participants will be better able to:
- Discuss and come to agreement on terminology for CP hip pathology.
- Review current levels of evidence and practice in CP hip management.
- Discuss the impact of hip dislocation on function and quality of life.
- Review current surveillance programs and their effectiveness in preventing dislocation.
- Review current treatment protocols in the preventative, reconstruction and salvage domains and develop recommendations and strategies in these areas for further research.
Please click here for more information.
James Blackman, MD, MPH, former AACPDM President and current Medical Director of the Kluge Children's Rehabilitation Center at the University of Virginia, has been awarded a Fulbright Senior Scholarship from the Australian-American Fulbright Commission to spend four months at the Queensland Cerebral Palsy & Rehabilitation Research Centre, Royal Children's Hospital, University of Queensland, Brisbane Australia.
Dr. Blackman's Fulbright project will give him the opportunity to extend research into genetic factors that influence the severity of cerebral palsy (CP). In particular, his focus is on the Apolipoprotein E (APOE) gene and the possibility that certain forms of it exert a protective effect on the developing brain of the fetus and newborn following brain insults.
Dr. Blackman will take advantage of a unique ongoing longitudinal study of cerebral palsy in Victoria and Queensland, developed and directed by AACPDM member Associate Professor Roslyn Boyd. This population-based study follows children with CP from 18 months of age until school age through extensive developmental, psychosocial, functional, and advanced imaging techniques. The study is funded both by the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council and U.S. National Institutes of Health.
This collaboration between Drs. Blackman and Boyd, across two distant continents, was facilitated by membership in the AACPDM, whose meetings provided the opportunity to meet, learn of common interests, and develop this joint project. Furthermore, the groundwork for this project resulted, in part, from an AACPDM research planning grant and a pilot grant from the Cerebral Palsy International Research Foundation (formerly UCPREF) with which the AACPDM has close intellectual ties. These are clear benefits of being an AACPDM member and participating in its educational and research activities.
Dr. Blackman with a young patient.
The American Academy of Pediatrics invites you to participate in their International Child Health Network. This dynamic web-based network aims to actively support meaningful collaborations among pediatricians and others who are working to improve global child health.
What is it?
The ICHN is a free and open service designed to establish connections that foster cooperation on a variety of health projects. This includes relief and development work, humanitarian service, equipment/supply donation, education, research, fundraising, and visitor exchange. The site is managed by the American Academy of Pediatrics' Section on International Child Health
What can it do for me?
The possibilities are endless. Successful collaborations developed from use of the ICHN might include:
- A pediatrician in Honduras finds a pediatric practice in Texas willing to host her for a week. Six months later she returns the favor in Tegucigalpa.
- A hospital in Kampuchea receives surgical supplies from individual European and American donors contacted through the Network.
- A researcher in Belize identifies a collaborator in London to partner on a quality improvement program in a Belmopan hospital.
- A relief agency finds 35 colleagues from 12 countries willing to work together on a tropical health education project.
How does it work?
Using the ICHN is simple! After a brief registration process, the network can be used in two ways:
1. You can search the ICHN independently to identify partners who have specific interests and expertise.
2. You can identify collaborators and/or opportunities through a Country Coordinator. Each country around the world has a designated Country Coordinator who has experience living or working in that country - and who will happily provide you with assistance or guidance.
Country Coordinators
A number of Country Coordinators have already been identified, but Coordinator positions for many countries remain to be open. If you are interested in contributing the network by volunteering to be a Country Coordinator for a country in which you have experience living or working, please contact Jonathan at jmspector@aap.net
When can I start?
Now! The ICHN launched in March, 2010, and is ready to serve you. To get started, simply point your browser to www.ichn.org. The power of the ICHN will sit entirely with its members - so please join the network today!
Dr. Lisa Thornton, AACPDM Advocacy Committee co-chair, appeared on Good Morning America on April 14 to launch a new book that she collaborated on. Please click here to read the article on Good Morning America's website and to view the segment. The book is titled Eat! Move! Play!: A Parent's Guide to Raising Happy Healthy Kids and is available through Amazon.com or a book seller near you.
Do you have an exceptional mentor in your professional life who deserves to be recognized?
Each year, the AACPDM recognizes an individual who has demonstrated outstanding leadership mentoring trainees and colleagues in the field of childhood-onset disabilities. The nominee should exemplify exceptional achievement in mentoring, with particular emphasis on a history of sustained mentorship over time and the scope/depth of the mentorship. Both the nominator and nominee must be current members of the AACPDM.
To nominate a mentor, electronically submit the name, title, current position and contact information of the nominee, and a brief (100 word) statement in support of the nomination. The deadline to submit this information to mentorship@aacpdm.org is 5:00 p.m. CST April 2, 2010.
The Research Committee will select a short list from the submissions and invite the nominators to submit the full nomination package. For more details and information on the AACPDM Mentorship Award, please click here.
2009 Mentorship Award winner James Gage, MD, with
his nominator Jean Stout, MS PT
The CRUDEM Foundation is seeking medical professionals to volunteer at their permanent hospital in Milot, Haiti. Milot is in northern Haiti, and the Hopital Sacre Coeur has been receiving patients from the local area as well as Port au Prince. Many of you may be familiar with CRUDEM through Dr. Hank Chambers' recent posts about his volunteer time in Milot in early February 2010.
CRUDEM is especially looking for nurses, physical therapists, occupational therapists, medical doctors and physician's assistants to volunteer their time and expertise. If you are interested and able to assist, please consider doing so.
As the news from Haiti comes in we are all aware of our need to provide support and assistance to others. The links below are a small start and focus on children and disability. Many of our members will be involved directly with service through other organizations and we welcome information about those as well. The International Affairs Committee will be compiling a more exhaustive list.
Healing Hands for Haiti: http://www.healinghandsforhaiti.org
Cure International: http://www.cureinternational.org
Center for International Research: http://www.cirnetwork.org
Project HOPE: http://www.projecthope.org
Updated 2/4:
AACPDM's immediate Past President Hank Chambers, MD, is currently volunteering in Haiti. On February 2, he provided this report:
I'm in Haiti right now working with the CRUDEM Foundation in the north of the country. It's the largest most complete hospital in Haiti. We are getting 30 to 50 air evacs from the US Navy every day. We now have over 350 patients and their families in a hospital built for 50. Our current and long term needs are going to be physiatrists and therapists. We had five therapists arrive on January 31, and they are key to getting people up off of their straw mats. I would say that we have over 200 amputees in our hospital right now. I just got out of the OR doing a below-knee amputation in an 8 year old. We are also the only hospital in Haiti accepting para and quadriplegics. The Navy ships are even sending them to us, and we have 12 right now.
A new guideline from the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) and the Child Neurology Society finds botulinum toxin type A to be an effective treatment for spasticity, muscle tightness that interferes with movement, in children and adolescents with cerebral palsy, but poses some risk. Please click here to read the full announcement from AAN.
The March of Dimes has applications open for three awards. Please click on the name of the award for more information.
2011 Basil O’Connor Starter Scholar Research Award
2011 Prematurity Research Initiative
The focus of Child Health Day 2009 was "Every Child Deserves a Medical Home." To recognize Child Health Day, the National Center for Medical Home Implementation produced a video compilation featuring children, families, and providers across the country who illustrate the value and importance of medical home for all children and youth. You can view the video and other resources from Child Health Day, including coloring sheets and flyers, on the National Center's Web site at http://www.medicalhomeinfo.org/about/ChildHealthDay2009.html.
Gregg Mozgala reduced symptoms of his cerebral palsy through dance. Please click here to view a video clip from Good Morning America sharing this story, and including AACPDM member Citlali Lopez-Ortiz, PhD.
The Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. Foundation is seeking exemplary professionals and/or family members of persons with intellectual or developmental disabilities who are currently working or volunteering in the field of inclusive services and supports for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities for an intensive one-year Public Policy Fellowship in Washington, D.C.
The purpose of the Fellowship is to prepare both early career and veteran leaders to assume leadership in the public policy arena in their home state and/or nationally. During this one year Fellowship, the successful applicant will learn how federal legislation is initiated, developed, and passed by the Congress, as well as how programs are administered and regulations promulgated by federal agencies.
Please click here for further details.
Please read this important message from the American Academy of Pediatrics regarding health care reform legislation.
The AACPDM 64th Annual Meeting will be 3 weeks earlier than originally scheduled. The new dates are: September 22 – September 25, 2010. Click here for more information.
On December 3, 2009, the Today Show featured a segment on cerebral palsy and robotic therapy. The segment showed footage from CPIRF’s project at Blythedale Children’s Hospital in Valhalla, NY featuring upper extremity robotic therapy and from the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago where a joint workshop was held on ‘Transformational Technologies’, to get the research community interested in using technologies shown to be effective in stroke rehabilitation for use in cerebral palsy therapy. Additionally, Meredith Vieira interviewed Dr. Nancy Synderman about the increasing prevalence of CP, the reasons why, and new therapies on the horizon.
Please click here to see the segment on the Today Show's website.
The DMCN supplement concentrating on Adults with Cerebral Palsy is now available. This supplement summarizes the information from the Adults with Cerebral Palsy workshop, which was developed to define the challenges of treating and preventing the secondary musculoskeletal and neuromuscular complications in this rapidly growing population.
An increasing number of individuals with cerebral palsy are living to adulthood. Although the neurological injury associated with cerebral palsy is non-progressive, these adults often develop musculoskeletal and neurological symptoms, such as severe pain, chronic fatigue, and premature decline of mobility and function. There is limited information on the prevention and management of these problems. Studies have reported significant pain which interferes with daily function in 67% to 82% of adults with cerebral palsy, with the back, hip, and lower extremities as the most common locations. However, these individuals face significant challenges find care providers who are comfortable seeing them because of their diagnosis.
In the fall of 2008, a conference was held on adults with cerebral palsy in Atlanta, GA as a pre-meeting to the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Cerebral Palsy and Developmental Medicine. This conference was chaired by Laura Tosi, M.D. (Orthopedic surgery, Children’s National Medical Center, Washington, DC) and Mindy Aisen, M.D. (former director of Cerebral Palsy International Research Foundation, now from Ranchos Los Amigos, Downey, Ca.). Proceedings from the conference have been published in a supplemental issue of the journal, Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology, and contains articles on musculoskeletal problems, pain issues, osteoporosis, neurologic interventions, and orthopedic care in adults with cerebral palsy, among other topics. All health care professionals are encouraged to become familiar with this information so that they can provide treatment to adults with cerebral palsy.
Click here for the most up-to-date information.
AACPDM would like to invite our members to participate in important research regarding the World Health Organization (WHO)’s International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) as it relates to children and youth with motor impairments, specifically cerebral palsy (CP).
The WHO developed the ICF in 2001 and went on to publish the child and youth version (ICFCY) in 2007. The goal of the ICF-CY is to create a framework to define and classify the health and function of children and youth around the world and to provide a comprehensive classification system of childhood disability that could be used across service systems.
For more information, please click here.
The AACDPM Advocacy Committee is hosting two very special instructional courses at this year's Annual Meeting. Instructional Course 16: Preparing for Federal Advocacy - Midterm Elections and Advocating on Capitol Hill will be held on Friday, September 25th at 3:30pm and Instructional Course 37: Crafting Your Advocacy Message for the Media will be held on Saturday, September 26th at 3:30pm. These two courses are intended to prepare attendees for the AACPDM 2010 Annual Meeting in Washington DC where we will be engaging in advocacy activities on the Hill - and also to teach members how to work with the media to share ideas and promote awareness. Meeting attendees interested in advocacy are encouraged to take both exciting courses.
Breakfast with the Experts Sessions at the 63rd Annual Meeting are filling up quickly! Ten Breakfast Sessions are already full, and AACPDM encourages you to submit your registration early to ensure that your remaining choice is still available. The sessions with space available are: BRK2, BRK5, BRK8, BRK14 and BRK15. Breakfast Sessions are hour-long courses, and true to their name include a plated breakfast. Registration for each Breakfast Session is limited to 50 and is on a first come, first served basis. You can click here to view descriptions of the Breakfast Sessions that will be offered in Scottsdale.
The March of Dimes has an informative advocacy web page and newsletter that will help you keep up to date on issues affecting children and healthcare in the United States today. Please take a look at this helpful resource.
Elaine Bragg, PT
Monica Carmona, OT
Laura Deon, MD
Christine Egan, PT
Heidi Haapala, MD
Natalie Maitre, MD PhD
Carrie Mallett, OT
Terrie Millard, PT
Seungguk Moon, MD
Traci Morse, PT
Scott Schultz, MD
Roslyn Ward, MS
The White House has released a statement on the 19th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, in which President Obama announces that the United States will be signing on to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in New York on December 13, 2006.
Rishi Agrawal, MD
Micah Baird, MD
Hsiu-Ching Chiu, MS PT
Claire Davies, PhD
Helen Enns, PT
Miriam Hwang, MD
Lynn Jeffries, PhD PT
Marion McAlpine, MD
Dong-wook Rha, MD PhD
Sarah Rogers, MPH
Mariann Sasvari, BSc
Beverley Tann, RN
Shannon Weir, BSc
The International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics has published their 2009 Cerebral Palsy Consensus Report. Please note that the PDF is 312 pages and may take a few moments to fully load.
International Scholarship Winners:
- Shabnam Rangwala, BSc (India)
- Mintaze Kerem Gunel, MD (Turkey)
- Snahel Ganesh Deshpande, BPT (India)
- Gadi Bialik, MD (Israel)
- Faustyna Manikowska, PhD (Poland)
Student Scholarship Winners:
- Kelly Clanchy (University of Queensland)
- Jenny Kennedy (Upstate Medical University)
- Sandy Saavedra (University of Oregon)
- Marie Brossard Racine (McGill University)
- Arta Lahiji (Mt. Sinai School of Medicine)
- Kimberly Sackheim (Mt. Sinai School of Medicine)
- Bernadette Gillick (University of Minnesota)
All scholarship winners receive complimentary Annual Meeting Registration as well as a stipend to assist with travel and housing costs at the Annual Meeting. Congratulations to all winners!
The AACPDM Research Committee is pleased to announce that the 2009 Research Planning Grant has been awarded to "FIT-ACTIVE-HABITS: Measurement of Fitness and Habitual Physical Activity in Persons with Cerebral Palsy". This project is being led by Dr. Margaret O'Neil, PT PhD MPH of Drexel University.
The Research Planning Grant is an award of up to $25,000 (USD) that is given annually. The purpose of this research grant is to provide support to bring together investigators from geographically disparate locations, obtain statistical consultation and develop a multi-center research study plan.
Congratulations to Dr. O'Neil and her team of researchers!
We are pleased to announce that registration for the 63rd Annual Meeting is now open! This year's meeting is being held in sunny Scottsdale, Arizona, on September 23-26, 2009 at the Westin Kierland Resort & Spa.
To view a PDF copy of the Preliminary Program, please click here. Please note that as part of our effort to hold a "Green" meeting this year, we did not print our Preliminary Program. This year's Preliminary Program will only be available online. This reduced the amount of paper used by 800,000 pages! It also meant less packaging and no gas spent shipping the programs.
To register online for the Annual Meeting, please click here. We hope that you will join us for this meeting in the beautiful city of Scottsdale, Arizona. For more information on Scottsdale please visit http://www.scottsdalecvb.com/.
Mindy L. Aisen, MD
Sandra Bertana, MD
Annet J. Dallmeijer, PhD
Bernadette Gillick, PT
Janice Justiz, PT
G. Elizabeth Macklin, MD, MA, FRCP
Sari Stoler
Karen Voogt, PT
Pamela Wilson, MD
Dr. Peterson was the lucky winner of an iPod Nano, congratulations!
Thank you to all the members that participated in the 2009 Membership Survey. We had a record response of 33%! The Board of Directors used the data collected to complete their Strategic Plan. This plan will be shared with the entire membership in the upcoming months.
We want to personally thank Dr. Bob Christopher for his years of service as the historian and de facto parliamentarian of our organization. As many of you know, Bob has been a tireless worker in this organization beginning long before he was president in 1987. Bob first served on the Board of Directors as the Scientific Program Chairman for Dr. Leonard Bender in 1980. He previously had served 3 years as Chair of the Research and Awards Committee having been appointed to that position by Dr. Leon Greenspan when he was President in 1977. That service spanned from 1977 to 1980. In 1981, Bob was elected to a 2-year, Director at Large position on the Board and then was elected Secretary in 1983. He has served on the Board continuously from 1981 through 2008. When you see him, please thank him for all that he has done for the Academy.
Dr. Al Scherzer has graciously accepted the job as historian and now he will be attending the meetings, giving his years of experience and wisdom. Al was president in 1986, and has continued to be very active and vocal in the organization as a past president. Please join me in welcoming him to the board.
The Nominating Committee, for the 2009 Election, is seeking names from the membership before we start deliberations. The following offices will be filled at the Annual Membership Meeting in September 2009.
2nd Vice President (1 position needs to be filled)
Treasurer-Elect (1 position needs to be filled)
Secretary-Elect (1 position needs to be filled)
Director-At-Large (2 positions need to be filled)
Nominating Committee for the 2010 elections (3 positions need to be filled)
Please send your nomination recommendations to damianod@cc.nih.gov by May 15, 2009.
The committee is scheduled to complete the final slate by July 2009.
Thank you,
Diane Damiano, PhD, PT
AACPDM 2009 Nominating Committee Chair / Past President
The following abstracts were accepted to this year’s program:
- 72 Free Papers
- 38 Instructional Courses
- Over 120 Posters
- 15 Breakfast Courses
The program will also consist of the crowd-pleasing Point Counter-Point debates, Specialty Day Sessions and the State of the Science Sessions. There will be many notable guest speakers and award recipients. The details on these speakers will be announced in the preliminary program, due out in May 2009.
If you want to have an announcement posted on the Have You Heard webpage, send all requests to the webmaster at info@aacpdm.org. Members in good standing receive priority.