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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Lt. Gov. Driscoll, State Officials Break Ground on Pittsfield Rail Improvements

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass.— State officials ceremoniously broke ground on rail infrastructure improvements as the train passed on Thursday. 

They also celebrated the now permanent Berkshire Flyer and strides towards a passenger train connecting western, central, and eastern Massachusetts. 

Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll said everyone benefits when there are more ways to get around, particularly on rail. 

"And because work like this isn't just about train service. We know it's going to help support our local businesses and bring families and loved ones together for the holidays and support our tourism industry. Certainly, strengthening the connections between Massachusetts and Berkshire County, from Berkshire all the way to the Cape," she said at the CSX Pittsfield Yard on East Street. 

"This is the before. I can't wait to see the after. And with continued investments and partnership, we're going to make that happen."

Massachusetts Department of Transportation Rail and Transit Administrator Meredith Slesinger explained that the groundbreaking marks an important milestone for improving existing services, but it's also a "down payment on the future West East Rail."

Several years ago, the state worked with CSX to establish a framework for piloting the Berkshire Flyer service seasonally on weekends between Pittsfield, Albany, and New York City. As part of that negotiation, a long-term agreement would depend on MassDOT contributing to infrastructure improvements to build corridor capacity and reduce potential for rail congestion. 

After assessing the service’s performance and partnering with CSX to identify needed infrastructure investments to enable a permanent service, two projects were identified: 

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