Date: Tuesday, July 23, 2019
Category: Conference News
A meeting of the RESNA International SIG was held at RehabWeek in Toronto, Canada at 7:00 AM ET on June 27, 2019. The Chair, Perry Loh, called the meeting to order and attendance was taken by Stephanie Vasquez. Nineteen people from 7 countries participated. See the list of attendees below.
Perry thanked the SIG co-charis Yohali Burrola and Yih-Kuen Jan for their work through the past year. A history of the SIG was shared by David Savage. It was appreciated and brought smiles to our faces as Jon and others shared their experience from that time period. Each attendees introduced themselves, highlighting topics of special interest to them.
Under Old Business we briefly reviewed activities since last year, of which there were many. Tamara provided an update on progress and plans for the 24/7 Posture Management Committee. She read a draft statement of purpose of the Committee that will soon be posted on the SIG homepage for comments. Perry thanked Mauricio for his work in translating the ATP exam to Spanish, and we discussed why that effort failed in the end. The FMA initiative for Latin America was announced and volunteers invited to participate. Kim mentioned other measures of outcome that would be appropriate for Latin America and could be added to the FMA. Won-Kyung and Myung Joon shared the news that South Korea will soon institute a compulsory AT certification requirement similar to the ATP regime in the U.S. Perry described the incubator concept for the International SIG and encouraged people to propose worthy projects.
Under New Business we touched on the need to improve our communication options. With over 250 members the listserv email is not always the best method to reach everyone. We run the risk of spamming people who are not interested in a specific topic. Ideas were suggested but no conclusion was reached. Roger shared his epiphany that there are more people with disabilities in China than the entire population of the USA. Jon mentioned the excellent materials and certification process available from ISWP, parts of which are available on the website in 14 languages. Karen mentioned the resources available from the London School of Tropical Medicine.
Perry invited candidates for election to Chair and Co-Chairs of the International SIG. He expressed a desire to hand off the SIG to someone else and promised to support and help them. Stephanie volunteered to serve as Co-Chair. Perry will ask Yohali and Yi-Kuen if they wish to continue as well.
The meeting concluded at 8:00 AM and the group gathered for a photo.
ATTENDEES: Stephanie Vasquez, Ivett Quiniones-Uriostegui, Issac Perez, Jannet Figueroa, Roger Smith, Stephen Bauer, Mauricio Lizama, Joe Keiderling, Karen Rispin, Jon Pearlman, Kim Adams, Tamara Kittelson-Aldred, Sammie Wakefield, Sandra Guzman, Lee Ann Hoffman, Won-Kyung Song, Myung Joon Lim, Miguel Cerna, Perry Loh
The International Special Interest Group (SIG) is a forum for RESNA members who are interested in networking, providing services, and conducting research relative to Assistive Technology outside of North America. We seek to both grow as individuals and contribute to our profession through the exchange of information and experience across borders. The International SIG encourages and facilitates collaboration on Assistive Technology projects worldwide. Find out more information here.