New Sales Manager Named

Andy Hicks

Altimate Medical, Morton, Minn, recently hired Andy Hicks as the eastern regional manager for the EasyStand® product line. Prior to joining Altimate Medical, Hicks began his career in occupational therapy, focusing on the area of adaptive equipment for patients with neurological disorders.

Later, Hicks pursued his interest in adaptive equipment working as a rehab specialist for several rehab equipment suppliers. For the past 10 years, he was the western regional manager for The ROHO Group, managing sales and presenting educational programs throughout much of the United States and parts of Canada. He is a board member of the New England Spinal Cord Injury Association and is actively involved in wheelchair athletics and other voluntary organizations.

Hicks works closely with Altimate Medical’s independent sales reps to educate suppliers, rehabilitation facilities, and schools on the benefits of standing and EasyStand products. His territory includes the eastern portion of the United States. For more information, contact (800) 342-8968; or at www.easystand.com.

Symposium’s Theme Is Accountability

The 23rd International Seating Symposium: Moving into the Age of Accountability will be held on March 8-10 in Orlando, Fla. This year, as funding sources are becoming more limited, and as certification is becoming a requirement for many, it is especially timely that the ISS is focusing on accountability. Suppliers, therapists, physicians, educators, and others involved in the provision of wheeled mobility and seating interventions will find programs of interest both during the main Symposium and at several preconference workshops.

On March 6, prior to the symposium and preconference workshops, there will be a Review Course intended for practitioners and suppliers who are preparing for the RESNA ATP and ATS examinations. New this year, to help people prepare for the exams, is a separate half-day preconference course on the practice of augmentative and alternative communication.

Additional preconference workshops on March 7 include two half-day sessions including "How do Your Services Measure Up?" and a full-day workshop, including "Policy and Funding for Mobility Assistive Equipment" sponsored by the National Registry of Rehabilitation Technology Suppliers, an entry-level program; "Using Assessment Information to Plan Seating Interventions, Pediatric Seating and Mobility"; and the "Clinical Practice Guidelines for Preservation of Upper Limb Function Following Spinal Cord Injury."

The full symposium begins on March 8. The keynote speaker is Marilyn Hamilton, vice president of global strategic planning at Sunrise Medical, and founder of Quickie Designs.

The full program including faculty can be found online at www.rstce.pitt.edu. For further information, contact Linda Szczepanski at or Elaine Trefler at .

Speech Generating Devices Unveiled

DynaVox Technologies, Pittsburgh, has unveiled the V and Vmax speech-generating devices at the Assistive Technology Industry Association’s annual conference in Orlando, Fla. Featuring the new InterAACT language framework, the V and Vmax provide individuals of all ages and abilities challenged by significant speech disabilities with a system that supports successful and efficient day-to-day communication, as well as language and literacy skill use and development. Features include: InterAACT, a clinical research-based language framework that provides ready-made vocabularies for emergent, situational, and creative communicators; AT&T Natural Voices for natural-sounding speech output that is easily understood by listeners; increased audio output and forward-firing speakers to improve intelligibility in high-noise environments; word and phrase prediction to enhance rate of communication; Drag-n-Drop editing for easy selection of images, sounds, and video from the Internet; User Setup Wizard enabling quick customization of preloaded communication page sets; and Mayer-Johnson’s popular Boardmaker® and Speaking Dynamically Pro™, included on each device, which provide a familiar operating environment on a new platform.

Additional features include: text messaging capabilities available with Bluetooth-enabled cell phones (purchased separately); the ability to send e-mail and text messages from within the Series 5 communication software, or via popular programs such as Microsoft Outlook or Messenger; and open architecture that enables users to run any Windows XP-compatible software.

For more information, go to www.dynavoxtech.com.

Annual Meeting Scheduled in Atlanta

The 2007 annual meeting of the Association of Children’s Prosthetic-Orthotic Clinics (ACPOC) will be held April 11-14 at the Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel, Atlanta. Hosting the ACPOC event is Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, a not-for-profit pediatric health care system.

Scheduled to address the meeting are Presidential Guest Speaker Mark Huang, MD, assistant professor, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Feinberg School of Medicine, Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, who will present "Multiple Limb Amputation Following Purpura Fulminans: Rehabilitation and Prosthetic Considerations," and Hector Kay Speaker John R. Fisk, MD, professor, Department of Surgery, Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, Springfield, who will discuss "What ACPOC Did for Me."

Symposia topics include "Non-Orthotic Treatment of Spinal Deformity," "Orthotic Management Options After Ponseti Treatment for Clubfeet," and "Measurement and Outcomes: Practical Tools for Analysis of Motion." The program also features scientific workshops: "The Modified Boston Brace Protocol, Physician-Guided Case Study Forum," and the "Prosthetic Fabrication Forum."

For more information about this meeting, contact ACPOC at (847) 698-1637, e-mail , or go to www.acpoc.org. For more information on Children’s, go to www.choa.org, or call (404) 250-KIDS.

PILATES EDUCATION GOES GLOBAL

Balanced Body, a Sacramento, Calif-based Pilates company, is expanding its Balanced Body University (BBU) with new programming. Offering some of the most flexible options available in Pilates education today, BBU has been expanded to support the increased demand for Pilates instructors due to the phenomenal consumer response for Pilates sessions. Recent reports indicate that Pilates participation in North America alone increased by 496% in the past 5 years.

BBU now features:

Global Instructor Training Programs–BBU offers an array of Pilates instructor training programs for studios and health clubs. A modular approach to the training programs for mat, reformer, chair, and tower work allows facilities to match their Pilates programs with member needs. BBU provides training, manuals, quarterly programming updates, and a host of support services for Pilates educators.

A Partnership Program—The Partnership Program supports existing training programs by leveraging Balanced Body’s marketing, sales, and educational resources. BBU works with Partnered Educators to provide Pilates education.

A Pilates Job Bulletin Board—Located on Balanced Body’s Web site, www.Pilates.com, the job board lists Pilates job openings posted by users from around the world.

An Education Finder—Found on Balanced Body’s Web site, the Education Finder enables interested students to easily find Pilates instructor training and simultaneously promotes instructor training programs, workshops, and conferences. Programs are searched by location, date, and type of training.

"BBU’s expanded capabilities were specifically designed to help Pilates professionals—both new and experienced—become more successful and profitable," said Ken Endelman, founder and chief executive officer for Balanced Body. "We invite those within the industry to join us as we explore new ways to create the finest in Pilates education."

In 2004, Balanced Body launched BBU and the Pilates on Tour continuing education conferences, setting the stage for BBU by offering high-quality education regionally from a diverse group of master teachers.

For more information, call (800) PILATES, or visit www.Pilates.com.

Continuing Education courses

A series full of five fully-accredited, one-day continuing education courses, “Preservation of Upper Limb Function Following Spinal Cord Injury: A Clinical Practice Guideline for Healthcare Professionals,” will begin March 23 in Palo Alto, Calif, and features speakers Kendra Betz, MSPT, ATP, and Ron Boninger, BSME, MBA.

The course, sponsored by Paralyzed Veterans of America, will emphasize the practical implementation of guidelines to foster an enhanced standard of care or manual wheelchair users. The course will also present oppportunities to learn about objectives to learn about objective measurement techniques for propulsion training, wheelchair comparison, and equipment configuration. Course registration is $50.

Additional course dates are: May 23, Bronx, NY; June 16, Phoenix (registration available through RESNA this date only); September 7, Seattle; and November 3, Dallas.

For more information and registration, contact (888) 832-1829, or go to www.3rivers.com.