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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Use of Slurs Sparks Community Conversation in Pittsfield

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — After a Herberg Middle School teacher was placed on leave for allegedly repeating homophobic and racial slurs used by a student, the district is gathering the community for a conversation about how to move forward. 

The discussion will be held Monday, May 11, at 6 p.m. at Conte Community School in partnership with the public schools, Westside Legends and the Berkshire chapter of the NAACP.

On Thursday, interim Superintendent Latifah Phillips said the district recognizes the seriousness of concerns from students, families, and staff members in a statement to the school community.

"As interim Superintendent, I have a broad view across our school system and am hearing experiences and concerns from many corners of our community. From my 26 years in education, I know these challenges are not unique to our district. That said, this is our opportunity to do this work within our own schools and strengthen our public education system and culture," she wrote over Parent Square, which was posted on social media and the district website. 

"I want to be clear that there is no place for derogatory or discriminatory language in our schools, whether in classrooms, hallways, on athletic fields, buses, or anywhere in our learning environments. We must address individual situations thoughtfully, fairly, and with care for everyone involved, while also committing to the long-term work of shaping school environments where every student experiences dignity, belonging, safety, and respect." 

At this meeting, they will discuss how to best move forward together. 

"Our students are watching how we respond," Phillips wrote. 

"We have an opportunity to model what it looks like to address difficult issues with fairness, dignity, honesty, and care, and in doing so, strengthen our schools for the long term." 

Last week, the Pittsfield Public Schools Human Resources Department confirmed that an 8th-grade teacher at the middle school was placed on leave. The teacher was reportedly describing a classroom incident when the slurs were repeated.

The complaint was publicly made by parent Brett Random, who is the executive director of Berkshire County Head Start. 

On her personal Facebook page, she said her daughter reported that her math teacher, "used extremely offensive language including both a racial slur (N word) and a homophobic slur (F word) and then reportedly tried to push other students to repeat those words later in the day when students were questioning her on her behavior."

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