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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Pittsfield School Committee Appoints Latifah Phillips as Permanent Superintendent

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The School Committee enthusiastically voted to hire Latifah Phillips as the permanent superintendent on Wednesday. 

Appointed as the interim last spring, Phillips is said to have brought meaningful initiatives centered on student outcomes to the Pittsfield Public Schools in a short period of time. Her hire is pending a successful contract negotiation.

"We've had a lot of really difficult decisions since January, and I think this one is easy," committee member Heather McNeice said. 

There was applause from attendees after the vote. 

Three options were listed on the agenda: Hire Phillips, conduct a search and allow Phillips to apply, or conduct a search not allowing Phillips to apply based on the interim search. Committee member Sarah Muil made the motion to hire Phillips, explaining that from her first conversations with the educational leader, she has felt like Phillips was at home. 

"She has always been unwavering, and everything that she's done, she's always kept a calm and steady way of talking through every situation with families, with staff members, with us," Muil said. 

"I feel as though I'm growing up with her in some way through this experience, because she is showing us what a leader truly can be when you allow them to be in the role that they should be in."

Phillips, who joined the meeting virtually, said this is one of the most significant moments in her life and career, and that serving PPS during this interim year has reinforced her belief in restraint, resilience, and potential with students, staff, families, and the community.

She said she looks forward to advancing the district’s shared vision and ensuring that every decision is centered on the success and well-being of students.

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