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 Council to See 2-Year Moratorium on Data Centers

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The City Council will consider a two-year data center moratorium from the Community Development Board. 

The board endorsed the moratorium on Tuesday; it had previously voted to become the petitioner. 

"I still think that it is a necessary, proactive, responsible measure by the city in order to take some time to assess the potential impacts of these improvements on Pittsfield and on the county, and make sure that we understand these systems and create some really truly responsible regulations that take into account all the different aspects of this technology," City Planner Kevin Rayner said. 

The petition would amend City Code Chapter 23 and create Article 23-4 Section 4.332, "Data Center, Temporary Moratorium." 

Last month, Gov. Maura Healey signed an executive order that gives municipalities the power to say "no" to data centers, and earlier this year, Ward 1 Councilor Kenneth Warren petitioned to explore implementing a moratorium on the establishment and siting of data centers.

Based on web results, there are as many as 75 data centers or projects in Massachusetts, none in Berkshire County. 

Rayner explained that he brought forward the same petition as before; it was sent to the council and then back to the board for a public hearing as part of the zoning amendment process. 

It defines a data center as a building or group of buildings where the primary use is to house computer systems, servers, data storage equipment, networking equipment, and associated infrastructure necessary for the processing, storage, and distribution of data and digital applications. 

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