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Summer 2016 (Volume 26, Number 2)

AHPA in Lake Louise

By Leslie Soever, BScPT, MSc, ACPAC

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The Arthritis Health Professions Association (AHPA) was pleased to join the CRA for the Annual Scientific Meeting (ASM) in Lake Louise, Alberta. This year featured our 8th annual Pre-course for arthritis health professionals with 101 attendees. There was an excellent slate of speakers including Dr. Joel Rubenstein (Imaging Review of Spondyloarthropathy); Dr. Jessica Weiser (Dermatologic Manifestations in Inflammatory Arthritis); Dr. Jennifer Stinson (Moving On: Engaging and Supporting Youth with Rheumatic Conditions in Transition); Dr. Shahin Jamal (Biologics and Small Molecules: 2015 in Review); Dr. Dawn Richards (Canadian Arthritis Patient Alliance: Past, Present, and Future); and Dr. Dharini Mahendira (Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Update). We also introduced a panel discussion, called ResearchInterrelational: The Power of Different Minds. Panelists included Dr. Mary Bell, Dr. Dawn Richards, Dr. Jennifer Boyle, and Dr. Sydney Brooks. Other contributors were anthropologist Dr. Gaya Embuldeniya and Dr. Joanna Sale, qualitative researcher. In keeping with the “Quality” theme, the day was capped off with a dynamic interactive presentation by nurse Leah Gitterman (A Complexity Science Based Approach to Improving Quality).

Rashmi Mandhane received the Extraordinary Service Award, which recognizes contributions by an AHPA Board Member in advancing the mission, vision, and goals of our association. Rashmi has served on the AHPA Board of Directors since 2012, initially as the Prairie Provinces Representative, then Member-at-Large for Western Canada. Since our Annual General Meeting (AGM) in 2016, she has added the Treasurer portfolio to her duties. Her many achievements include her excellent leadership, development, and implementation of AHPA’s new website which launched successfully on target and on budget November 1, 2016. In addition, Rashmi has been instrumental in her advocacy for our organization throughout Western Canada.

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Rashmi Mandhane being presented the Extraordinary Service Award by Leslie Soever, AHPA President.

The AHPA Clinical Innovation Award recognizes members who have designed and implemented an innovative clinical project or related initiative that benefits the lives of Canadians living with arthritis. This year’s winner was Dr. Marie Westby for her project Total Joint Arthroplasty Outcome Measure (TJAOM) Toolkit.

The Arthritis Society Research Award was presented to Dr. Lucie Brosseau for her work, Are Popular Structured Physical Activity Programs Promising for the Pain Management of Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis? A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.

The Carolyn Thomas Award was established in honour of a founding member of the AHPA who supported research. It is given to the first author of the year’s best scientific abstract. The recipient was Dr. Raquel Sweezie for her research Reliability Analysis of Two Short Medication Adherence Questionnaires in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis.

The Barbara Hanes Memorial Award was established in honour of her work as an Occupational Therapy Director at The Arthritis Society, Ontario Division, and her contributions as a teacher and a contributing author of the rheumatology textbook Physical Therapy in Arthritis. This award was presented to Dr. Karine Toupin-April for her research entitled A Decision-making Needs Assessment of Youth with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis and their Caregivers: Preliminary Results from a Narrative Review.

Congratulations to all award winners and thank you for your excellent work which contributes to improved care for individuals with arthritis! I would also like to thank all members of the AHPA Board of Directors for their dedication and efforts in the ongoing work of AHPA.

Leslie Soever, BScPT, MSc, ACPAC
President,
Arthritis Health Professions Association
Bolton, Ontario

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