Provider Profile – Suzanne Childs, BHS Occupational Therapist

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Across the country, there are nearly 135,000 Occupational Therapists, and Suzanne Childs, who provides this specialized care at the Center for Rehabilitation at BMC, says OT goes beyond helping someone regain their functions for work.
 
"We promote functional independence for people and help restore not only vocational skills, but also homemaking and daily living skills," said Childs. "Occupational Therapy covers the full range of activities people of all ages do to live functional, meaningful lives."
 
Suzanne has been with BMC since 1994 and has served as an Occupational Therapist in the Berkshires for nearly 30 years, most of that time in the outpatient setting. She came to the Berkshires after providing OT services in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and later New York state.
 
"Occupational Therapists often work together with Physical Therapists, but our roles are quite unique. PT focuses on improving the patient's ability to move their body, whereas I concentrate on improving my patient's ability to perform activities of daily living. We help our patients to do things beyond their PT care, such as brushing their teeth, getting dressed, making meals and all of their other everyday tasks that may have been impeded by an illness or injury."
 
Suzanne is a graduate of Eastern Michigan University and completed her clinical education at Toledo Mental Health in Ohio and Magee Rehabilitation Hospital in Philadelphia. Over the years, she has provided care for spinal cord injury, stroke, post-acute rehabilitation for children and young adults and general rehabilitation.
 
If you need Occupational Therapy or any kind of rehabilitative care, ask your primary care provider for a referral or call the Center for Rehabilitation at BMC at 413-447-2234.




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Berkshire County Sheriff's Office Warns Public of Phone Scam

PITTSFIELD, Mass. —Berkshire County Sheriff Thomas Bowler is warning members of the community about an ongoing phone scam involving individuals falsely claiming to be employees of, or affiliated with, the Berkshire County Sheriff's Office.

The Sheriff's Office has received an increased number of calls from community members reporting that they were contacted by someone claiming to be a member of the Sheriff's Office from numbers with 413 area codes that sometimes show up on a caller ID as Berkshire County Sheriff's Department. During these calls, the caller claims the resident owes money for various reasons and attempts to collect payment. Scammers may request money orders, cashier checks, gift cards, or other items. Sometimes scammers will say a courier will come to a house to pick up the item or will request that account or gift card information be read over the phone.

The Berkshire County Sheriff's Office will never call a community member to demand or collect payment, request gift cards, or ask for. The Berkshire County Sheriff's Office will never send a courier to a resident's house. Residents should not assume a call is legitimate simply because the Sheriff's Office number appears on their caller ID.

Residents should not assume a call is legitimate simply because the Sheriff's Office number appears on their caller ID. The scammers are also spoofing the Berkshire County Sheriff's Office phone number, causing the legitimate number to appear on the recipient's caller ID in an effort to make the call appear authentic. Spoofing is when a scammer disguises a phone number, email address, or website to look like someone they know or a trusted agency's number.

"Scammers use fear, urgency, and the credibility of law enforcement to convince people that their demands are legitimate," said Sheriff Thomas Bowler. "If you receive a call like this, hang up. Do not provide personal or financial information, and do not send or transfer money."

Residents who receive a suspicious call should independently contact the Berkshire County Sheriff's Office at (413) 443-7220 to verify whether the call was legitimate. Do not use a phone number provided by the caller to verify their identity.

Sheriff Bowler urges residents to share this information with family members, friends, and neighbors, particularly those who may be more vulnerable to these types of scams.

 

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