Title: PaTTAN Webinar - Guidelines for the Practice of Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy in Educational Settings

Course Description: During this session, members of the 2023 Guidelines document task force will highlight the main points of the Guidelines for Practice of Occupational Therapy (OT) and Physical Therapy (PT) in Educational Settings. They will summarize the Guidelines and provide practical application suggestions. Participants will move into breakout rooms and discuss specific questions. Afterwards, participants will return to the main room to review the outcomes of these discussions. Join us for in-depth knowledge building and understanding of the Guidelines and have your questions answered.

Speakers: 
Dr. Rita Geddes, PT, MEd, DPT has served as a school-based physical therapist for over 30 years at the Bucks County Intermediate Unit in the Bensalem Township School District. She was the chairperson for the Pennsylvania Physical Therapy Association (PPTA) Pediatric Special Interest Group from 2007 – 2012, has been a contributing author for multiple editions of Tecklin’s Pediatric Physical Therapy, and participated in the development of PPTA’s Guidelines for the Practice of Physical Therapy in Educational Settings. She has also served as a clinical instructor since 1989 and as a clinical coordinator for clinical education, being honored with a Clinical Instructor Award by Drexel University in 2024.

Katie Landsiedel, OTD, OTR/L has been practicing as a certified and licensed occupational therapist for twelve years, working with children, adolescents, and young adults in settings such as early intervention, school-based practice, and telehealth. Dr. Landsiedel has extensive experience within a variety of special education classroom settings such as Autistic Support, Life Skills Support, Multiple Disability Support, Learning Support, and Emotional Support, and with program development and assessment, specifically related to Transition. Dr. Landsiedel is the co-chair for the Pennsylvania Occupational Therapy Association (POTA)’s School-based Task Force, a committee dedicated to the development and dissemination of the Guidelines for the Practice of Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy in Educational Settings.

Dr. Paula McNamara, OTD, MS, OTR/L has been practicing in schools, early intervention, and community-based mental health for two decades. She has presented at state and national conferences on school-based practice including presentations on her doctoral work which focused on occupational therapy’s role in providing Tier 1 interventions within school-based practice. Dr. McNamara has served on the Pennsylvania Occupational Therapy Association (POTA) Board for the last 10 years in various elected roles including serving as Vice President for 4 years. She currently leads POTA’s Commission of Practice. Dr. McNamara, along with Dr. Landsiedel, identified the need to create a School Based Task Force within POTA. In order to support member feedback, the initial focus of the Task Force was to create the much-needed Guidelines for the Practice of Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy in Educational Settings for Pennsylvania. Dr. McNamara currently works as a district occupational therapist in a school district just outside of Philadelphia.

AnnMarie Stauffer, PT, DPT graduated from the University of Pittsburgh and Drexel University. She is a school based physical therapist for the Lancaster Lebanon IU13 in PA. Professional interests include facilitating quality of life and participation for children and young adults with medical complexity. Serving as a leader in the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), she is the APTA-PA South Central District Director and Member at Large, has served as the Pediatric Special Interest Group Secretary, and the APPT liaison for the School and AADA SIGs. She serves as a clinical instructor and is a member of the APPT-School-based SIG Subcommittee- Children with Medical Complexity.

Miranda Virone, OTD, MS, OTR/L is an Assistant Professor of Occupational Therapy at Slippery Rock University and has an extensive background in the physical, psychological, and social development of children and youth. She has worked in public and private education sectors for nearly a decade affording her an understanding of the unique needs of administrators, faculty, and students. Her work as an educational consultant with local, state, and national programming initiatives allows her to support schools in developing comprehensive school mental health programs to support all students. Dr. Virone is currently pursuing a PhD in development psychology to advance her research regarding the various impacts of youth social participation in the digital context.

Location: Virtual

Cost: There is no cost for this course.

Credit: Act 48 clock hours; OT, PT

Register Here

For general registration information and questions, please contact Michael Stagemyer, PaTTAN Central at [email protected]

For content related information and questions, please contact Beth Konde, PaTTAN Central at [email protected] or Jen Hess, PaTTAN Central at [email protected]