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Get a free pre-assessment of your child via Skype!

You are interested in ABR, but still wondering if it is suitable for your child?  Want to know what ABR can do for him/her? Inquire from home! Thanks to the magic of technology, it is possible for us to come into your home, have a look at your child, conduct a 30 minutes pre-assessment and talk ‘live’ about ABR possibilities in his/her specific case.

Get all your questions answered without leaving your home…

Book your pre-assessment today!

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ABR now in Toronto and in Lima, Peru!

Opened at the end of 2014, ABR Canada now has a working satellite in Mississauga, Ontario.

More good news: our new ‘Thrive and Flourish’ program waas offered for the first time in October 2015 in Lima, Peru!

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New ABR tools speed up results!

ABR introduced new tools and techniques in its Spring sessions to further enhance your child’s improvements!  Our scientifically proven innovative techniques are continuously evolving.

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ABR partners up with a nutritionist

Last November, at the Acquired Brain Injury Provincial Conference, organized by the Ontario Brain Injury Association, we had the opportunity to meet Joanne Smith, certified nutritional practitioner and co-author of the book Eat Well, Live Well with Spinal Cord Injury & Other Neurological Conditions.  She runs a successful nutrition business, specializing in providing optimal nutritional health for people with disabilities, with special interest in spinal cord injury.  Joanne has presented at conferences across Canada.

Her expertise in the disability community comes from her personal experience of living with a spinal cord injury for twenty-five years, as well as her years as host and producer of two national television programs focusing on in-depth stories about Canadians with disabilities, the Gemini award-winning CBC show Moving On and Accessibility in Action. 

Joanne’s dedication to raising awareness and improving the lives of Canadians with  disabilities led to her receiving the King Clancy Award in 2006, being inducted into the Terry Fox Hall of Fame in 2007 and being honored with the Gabriel Award in 2008.

ABR’s approach piqued her curiosity and she decided to attend our last Thrive and Flourish session in Toronto.  She was absolutely thrilled by the experience:  ‘Just wanted to let you know that I attended the introductory session yesterday with Marianna and the new parents. It was absolutely fascinating and Marianna is such a wonderful speaker/therapist! …’

 We concluded that her nutritional knowledge in the domain would be a fantastic complement to ABR’s trans-fascial approach.

Joanne will be writing a monthly nutritional blog for ABR Americas.  Here is what she has to say…

Any parent living with a child with Cerebral Palsy, or any other neurological condition, knows that nutrition has not traditionally played a significant role in their child’s rehabilitation or long term health care.  Trying to find accessible facilities or even information that caters to the unique nutritional needs of children with disabilities (the people who in many cases need this form of complimentary and preventative health care the most) is extremely difficult.  

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ABR launches its new ‘Thrive and Flourish’ program!

ABR is now more accessible than ever!

Wherever you live in North or South America, a group of 6 to 10 families is all it takes for ABR to ‘locally’ offer its new One-Year ‘Thrive and Flourish’ Program.

The Thrive and Flourish program consists of 3 sessions within a 1-year period, during which our experienced ABR trainers will teach you the main ABR techniques. You will be provided with all tools and equipment necessary to confidently perform a home-based therapy program on your own.

 

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Inclusive Technology wins Queen’s Award for Enterprise

Inclusive Technology is among a select list of 249 companies announced as award winners by Her Majesty The Queen on the occasion of her 90th birthday on 21 April 2016.

The Queen’s Awards for Enterprise are made annually and are only given for the highest levels of excellence demonstrated in one of three categories: Innovation, International Trade, and Sustainable Development.

Inclusive Award’s award is in the International Trade category and reflects the growing importance of its online which have significantly boosted its overseas sales. These include HelpKidzLearn, a series of accessible games, activities and tools designed specifically for young children and those with learning difficulties, and ChooseIt! Maker 3, which allows teachers to create individual learning activities personalized to each child.

The company also sells a wide range of accessible software and hardware.

Inclusive develops accessible software aimed at children who perhaps can only make a single voluntary movement, and we provide the alternative keyboards, joysticks, rollerballs, switches and touch screens these learners may need.  We are also expert in eye gaze technology, which is increasingly important in our field.

In 2014/15 Inclusive had customers in 59 overseas countries. While Europe is still responsible for over half of its overseas sales this falls to under a quarter when it comes to its online services. Here it is the US and other English-speaking countries – Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa – that dominate. In Europe the company has 21 dealers in 14 countries who it is working with to get the HelpKidzLearn website into local languages. So far these include Catalan, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Spanish and Swedish.

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‘Special families’ exploring a co-housing concept

© 2016 the Naples Daily News , Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

NAPLES, Fla. —Terry and Debby Kays, Naples, Florida, want to develop what they call “cohousing,” where families live side by side in a community they run with a shared mission of caring for loved ones with autism or other disabilities. The concept is for safe, affordable and financially sustainable long-term housing.

The Kays operate a local non-profit advocacy group called Adonis Autism.

The planned name is Osprey Village, and the Kays are searching for families to join them.

“What we need to do is support these families,” Terry Kays said.

The couple knows firsthand the predicament of families with a child or adult child with a disability.

Debby Kays has a son, Walter, 23, who has autism. He is living with them at home again in North Naples after an unsuccessful try at a local group home.

The idea of Osprey Village is similar to senior communities with supportive services, Terry Kays said.

“Cohousing is self-organized and a self-financed group of families that come together to develop a supportive community,” he said. “It is family driven.”

There are about 130 family-run housing communities around the country similar to the Osprey Village concept but none in Southwest Florida or the region, Terry Kays said.

The communities can be designed in many different ways but an overriding principle is that families decide the structure.

He envisions the cost for each family at roughly $200,000 to $250,000 but much of that depends on the cost of land. A minimum of seven acres is needed but 10 acres is more ideal.

A key layout feature is a cluster of single family homes, townhomes or a combination with a pedestrian corridor for safety.

Henning put some concepts on paper for Osprey Village with townhouses and a community center for families to consider the possibilities.

The architect interested in the project suggested a community center or “common house” is for shared activities, classrooms and other services. The common house would offer respite to families by sharing tasks, according to a brochure for the community.

“A lot of parents are single parents and have to work,” Debby Kays said.

Since the Kays started working on Osprey Village, they have 6 families interested in participating in the project.

“We need 20,” Kays said. “That is our goal.”

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