Special Workshop Event for Survivors & Caregivers
BIST, along with the Ontario Brain Injury Association (OBIA) and Brain Injury Canada (BIC), will be hosting a special workshop event for survivors and caregivers as part of the 13th Annual World Congress on Brain Injury. This event will be held following the Congress and will take place on Sunday, March 17 from 9:30 a.m. until 12:00 p.m.
Cost: $10
Location: Sheraton Centre Hotel, Toronto, ON
Register for the ABI Survivor Workshop HERE
Register for the Caregiver Workshop HERE
Survivor Workshop
Session # 1: 9:30 – 10:30 am
How To Access Our Resources for Resiliency with Mindfulness
Speakers: Jaisa Sulit and Charlene Gethons – Wallis for Wellness
No matter where one is along their life’s journey, mindfulness helps us to wake up to the resources that are always available in each present moment. With practice, we can strengthen our capacity navigate the challenges of living with a brain injury with more resiliency. Jaisa Sulit, who lives with a spinal cord injury and Charlene Gethons, who lives with a brain injury are both qualified Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction teachers and continue to witness the benefits of mindfulness both for themselves and their clients. During this session Jaisa and Charlene will guide participants through several mindfulness practices with the intention of having you experience more fully the feeling of being with all of yourself – body, mind and spirt – with an openness that can lead to healing and growth.
BREAK: 10:30 – 11:00 am
Session # 2: 11:00 am – 12:00 pm
Nutrition and Brain Injury: How food can help support your brain recovery, mood, and cognitive functioning
Speaker: Kylie James – Koru Nutrition Inc.
Understand the importance of diet following a brain injury and learn simple and easy ways to change your diet to help boost your mood, reduce stress, improve sleep and give you more energy and focus. This will also include a case study.
REGISTER HERE
Caregiver Workshop
Session #1: 9:30 – 10:30 am
Supporting Loved Ones with Challenging Behaviours and Mood Following Brain Injury
Speaker: Dr. Hiten Lad – Lad and Associates
In this workshop Dr. Hiten Lad will explore possible emotional changes and behavioural challenges following a brain injury. Learn how these changes can affect you, your loved one, and your relationship. We will also look at practical strategies on how to help you and your family member manage and cope with your new normal.
BREAK: 10:30 – 11:00 am
Session # 2: 11:00 am – 12:00 pm
COOK: Smart home technology to enhance independence, ensure safety, and reduce caregiver burden
Speaker: Dr. Carolina Bottari
This presentation will introduce smart home technology called the COgnitive assistant for coOKing (COOK). This technology was developed with a user-centered design by our interdisciplinary team of rehabilitation and computer scientists, in collaboration with individuals having sustained a severe traumatic brain injury and their caregivers. The goal of COOK is to ensure safety while cooking a meal, and optimize the independence and long-term rehabilitation of individuals with severe TBI. We will show how COOK has so far allowed three individuals having sustained catastrophic brain injuries to integrate an alternative living residence where they are now managing part of their meals on their own, with or without COOK. The findings of this study demonstrate that COOK technology facilitated the transfer of these individuals from a long-term care residence with no access to cooking of any type to a supervised apartment with cooking privileges. Presentation of a mobile app developed to facilitate caregiver supervision will complete this presentation.
REGISTER HERE