{"id":6011,"date":"2020-12-09T15:04:55","date_gmt":"2020-12-09T20:04:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/?p=6011"},"modified":"2020-12-09T15:04:55","modified_gmt":"2020-12-09T20:04:55","slug":"kathy-adams-ot-l-45-years-as-a-dedicated-occupational-therapist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/2020\/12\/09\/kathy-adams-ot-l-45-years-as-a-dedicated-occupational-therapist\/","title":{"rendered":"Kathy Adams, OT\/L: 45 Years as a Dedicated Occupational Therapist"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: left\"><em><span style=\"color: #003366\">The International Day of Persons with Disabilities\u2014December 3&#8211; is a day designated by the United Nations to remind the world of the important work ongoing in communities around the world to address discrimination, marginalization, and exclusion for people living with disabilities.\u00a0 For this, we\u2019d like to honor Kathy Adams OTL, who spent her career advancing the well-being of people with disabilities. Her experience with the disability community, her knowledge of employment challenges, and her understanding of the breadth and depth of assistive technology benefited countless Maine families.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-size: small\">Assistive Technology (AT) is any device or piece of equipment that allows people of all ages and abilities to live independent and full lives. AT is at the heart of functionality; that is , functioning fully at home, in school, in the workplace, and in the community. AT can be:<br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: small\">Low-tech\u201d grab bars, non-slip stair treads, telescoping rake<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: small\">High tech: Smart phones, laptop computers, educational software<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: small\">Aids for mobility: wheelchairs, walkers, braces, canes<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: small\">Aids for sensory and cognitive skills: Smart phones, apps, eyeglasses, hearing aids<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #003366\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-6018 size-thumbnail alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/12\/Copy-of-image001-150x150.png\" alt=\"photo of Kathy Adams\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/12\/Copy-of-image001-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/12\/Copy-of-image001-591x592.png 591w, https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2020\/12\/Copy-of-image001-32x32.png 32w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/span><\/h3>\n<h3><strong>Kathy Adams, OT\/L: 45 Years as a Dedicated Occupational Therapist<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Kathy Adams recently retired from her position as Director of the Maine CITE Assistive Technology (AT) Program.\u00a0 Maine CITE is the state-wide AT program making assistive technology (AT) more widely available to Mainers who have disabilities: children, adolescents, adults, and seniors who need it.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #003366\"><i>EG: What were early influences that led you to the field of occupational therapy?<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy mother was a medical social worker,\u201d said Adams. \u201cHer work in the hospital was always strongly community-based, and that made a big impression on me. Summers, during my teenage years, I had the opportunity to work at the hospital in various medical fields, with OTs, PTs, nurses and physicians. When it came time for college, the University of New Hampshire was five miles away from my home in Dover, and it had an OT program. I knew OT would offer a versatile career.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her first job was at Maine Medical Center, in a traditional hospital rehabilitation setting. Her second job was with Alpha One, Maine\u2019s Independent Living Center, and where she found her calling.<\/p>\n<p>Adams was the first occupational therapist (OT) hired by Alpha One\u2019s founder, Steve Tremblay. OTs typically are educated in the medical model. Tremblay\u2019s approach at Alpha One\u2019s was based on function, based on what consumers wanted to achieve in their lives.\u00a0 Alpha One gave them autonomy to become self-directing and live more independently, then backed them up with the support and services needed to be successful. \u201cOf course, I used my OT knowledge every day,\u201d said Adams, \u201cBut my title was \u2018Independent Living Specialist.\u2019 We took a functional approach to working with individuals who have disabilities.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFunctional independent living skills come first. It\u2019s a matter of meeting the consumer wherever they are. First, they achieve solid skills for daily living and managing in their home and community \u2013 then, productive employment goals can be set and achieved.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Adams advanced to become the Director of Consumer Services and remained at Alpha One for 23 years.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #003366\"><i>EG: What changes were occurring during that time\u00a0within the disability rights community? Was community awareness\/inclusion improving?<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201cSociety has become more accepting over time and more people with disabilities are active and inclusive in their communities,\u201d said Adams.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVery strong federal laws were passed, starting with the Federal Rehab Act of 1973,\u201d she continued. \u201cFederal Special Education laws followed and were earth shattering. They enabled therapists to work with school kids in special education.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Federal Assistive Technology Act of 1989 created the Maine CITE program. Maine was one of only eight states nationally to receive funding in the first year. Now, there are AT programs funded in all states and territories of the US. The AT Act focused on the assistive technology needed for people with disabilities to achieve greater independence in their education, community living and employment. The programs connect AT with consumers.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Americans with Disabilities Act passed in 1990 and this civil rights law made a significant impact on the lives of people with disabilities.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEach piece of legislation has built important services and supports for families, caregivers, children, adults and seniors in Maine and across the country,\u201d said Adams.<\/p>\n<h3>Transition to Maine CITE<\/h3>\n<p>Adams transitioned to Maine CITE in 2005 as an Assistive Technology Specialist, working under then director Kathy Powers. In 2013, Adams became the Director of the Maine CITE Program, taking care of budgets, expanding AT services in Maine and networking across the state with many AT professionals and provider organizations. Getting the word out about Maine CITE was ongoing and Adams was the face of the organization in Maine and nationally.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cWorking with Kathy Adams has been a pleasure and a privilege. She has served as a mentor and advisor, colleague and collaborator in my time at Maine CITE. The people of Maine have long benefited from her expertise, judgment and sound practice.&#8221;\u00a0 <em>John Brandt, Training\/Operations Coordinator, Maine CITE<br \/>\n<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>\u201cWe worked closely with therapists, case managers, social workers, and special education teachers,\u201d said Adams. \u201cWe worked with organizations like the state Agencies on Aging, Vocational Rehabilitation, Alpha One, ALLTECH, Pine Tree Society and Goodwill. Public awareness is a cornerstone of the AT Act.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #003366\"><i>EG: Do you think Maine CITE is utilized as well as it could be?<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Adams sighed. \u201cThere are always people who haven\u2019t heard of us. There will always be more we can do to reach people. But the impact continues to increase. We had more than 1200 people attend our webinars last year. Our numbers have steadily grown in the past five years.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Yes, there will always be more work to do to improve the lives of those living with a disability. After 45 years of \u201cpurposeful activity,\u201d Adams has handed over the reins for others to continue the work. Her legacy of service to\u00a0individuals, families and communities throughout Maine will not be forgotten.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #003366\"><i>Adams <\/i><i>has worked closely with Maine AgrAbility since 2010, an invaluable member of our Advisory Council. <\/i><i>From all the staff at Maine AgrAbility, thank you, Kathy, for all that you brought to this important work!\u00a0\u00a0<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Read more about AT &amp; Maine AgrAbility: <a href=\"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8QzEP-1hP\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em>Addressing Farming Challenges with Assistive Technology Solutions<\/em><\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: #003366\"><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The International Day of Persons with Disabilities\u2014December 3&#8211; is a day designated by the United Nations to remind the world of the important work ongoing in communities around the world to address discrimination, marginalization, and exclusion for people living with disabilities.\u00a0 For this, we\u2019d like to honor Kathy Adams OTL, who spent her career advancing [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":42,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"66","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":"","spc_primary_category":0},"categories":[66],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6011","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-maine-agrability-blog"],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":66,"label":"Maine AgrAbility Blog"}]},"featured_image_src_large":false,"author_info":{"display_name":"","author_link":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/author\/"},"comment_info":"","category_info":[{"term_id":66,"name":"Maine AgrAbility Blog","slug":"maine-agrability-blog","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":66,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":50,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":66,"category_count":50,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Maine AgrAbility Blog","category_nicename":"maine-agrability-blog","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6011","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/42"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6011"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6011\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6029,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6011\/revisions\/6029"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6011"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6011"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/agrability\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6011"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}