Thought provoking movie

So here's another movie suggestion (can you tell I have more time on my hands now that term has ended?). It's called 'The Diving Bell and the Butterfly'. It's a true story and adapted from a novel by the same name. It's an extremely well written and filmed French flick with a great soundtrack to match. I'm going to put my reaction to this film in the comments section (commenting on my own blog - sad?)so as not to ruin the storyline. I would love to know what other people think about this movie. So don't be shy to comment on my comment. Movie website and trailer link: http://www.thedivingbellandthebutterfly-themovie.com/

Army OT's

At the beginning of the year, we attended a Rehab Expo. It was pretty inspiring to see the array of amazing designs and devices that exist out there for people with disabilities. Curiously, one of the exhibition booths at the Expo was a recruiting stand for the Canadian Army. One of my classmates went up to the booth and asked if the army employed OT's. The women looked blank - the sort of "shall I admit that I don't really know what an OT is or should I just wing it" look. Recognising this expression, my classmate filled her in on the ins and outs of a job that would seem essential in the rehab of injuries inflicted during service. The women replied that she thought the army employed PT's but not OT's. If anyone knows whether the Canadian Army employs OT's, I would be interested to know. Maybe this is one of those areas where OT is not deemed essential enough to put funding into, but wouldn't all an injured soldier want to do is return to "normal living"? That could be a tough proposition without the help of an OT. Anyway, this little YouTube clip below shows the American Army have figured it out.

Inspiring documentary

I saw this great documentary on CBC the other day. It was part of The Passionate Eye documentary series. The program follows Dr. Jack Kessler who is leading research into nerve regeneration using stem cells. Dr. Kessler is particularly passionate about this as his daughter has a spinal cord injury. Obviously a huge controversy is sparked off when the words 'stem cell research' are mentioned, but for those of us in rehab, this program is inspiring and makes it seem like important developments are just around the corner if only the moral/ethical/political issues can be resolved - don't hold your breath for that one though. There's a link to a trailer of the documentary below but try to get hold of the full program (er, not quite sure how, contact CBC?). There's also a link to a discussion board which opens up some of the issues touched on by the documentary. For anyone interested in spinal cord injury, this documentary is fascinating and inspiring to watch.