An initiative by our CIUSSS to involve parents in their children’s therapy sessions has won the 2024 Family and Person-Centered Care Award from Children’s Healthcare Canada.
The prize-winning project grew out of a collaboration between the Rehabilitation Directorate and OROT, our CIUSSS’s connected health innovation hub. In 2023, the Lethbridge-Layton-Mackay Rehabilitation Centre sought ways to include parents in their children’s therapy, since evidence shows that parental involvement improves therapy outcomes. The team reached out to OROT, which helped establish a partnership with Braver, an app that connects healthcare professionals with families, allowing parents to securely access photos, videos, and strategies from therapy sessions.
“We’re really proud of this app, and we’re proud of all the work that’s been done, together with OROT and our researchers,” says Mary Lattas, Director of Rehabilitation and Multidisciplinary Services. “This is what our CIUSSS represents: Innovation, bringing people together to answer clinical questions, and coming up with a solution for everybody.”
The prize was awarded October 21 at Children’s Healthcare Canada’s annual conference in St. John’s, Newfoundland, to Emily Lecker, Program Manager for the Rehabilitation Program in Specialized Schools; Danina Kapetanovic, OROT’s Head and Chief Innovation Officer; Sara Ahmed of McGill University and Marie-Lou Gagnon of Braver.
Thank you to all of those who made the award possible, including McGill University’s School of Physical and Occupational Therapy; the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation of Greater Montreal (CRIR); the Habilitas Foundation; and Ms. Lattas among many others.
Find out more about the project in the 360 Employee Newsletter and in this video.