Happy New Year

Happy New Year & may 2012 be an especially great year for each of you.

Thanks to all of my clients and students for a great 2011.

Here is a list of some things that I wanted to update you on:

Publications


Long Term Care, 6th edition was published in 2011. This new edition is very comprehensive and getting rave reviews nationally and internationally. This edition is for activity professionals, recreational therapists, social service coordinators and any other individuals wanting the most up to date information on quality of life and psycho social needs of the elderly.


Exercise for Frail Elders, 2nd edition will be out at the end of this year. This new edition is going to be a must have for all fitness instructors working with older adults and frail elders. It includes a new section on balance, core and agility exercises to add to your classes.

My "Let's Get Moving" column for Creative Forecasting keeps readers up to date on all aspects of physical activity and wellness programs on a quarterly basis.

Classes and Trainings


Activity Coordinator Training Course. Our most recent class graduated in December, 2011. Our teaching team, Marianne York Gontarz, LCSW and myself (CTRS) welcomed Lauren Ellis, OT/L to the team. I am so thankful for the enthusiasm and educational additions that you both have brought to this important training.


Jason Lau, Ph.D., the new College of Marin Director of Community Education, Lifelong Learning and International Education came to this graduation and congratulated the new grads. Thanks for your support.

Upcoming Classes this semester

Strength and Flexibility for Adults and Older Adults will begin in February
Boomer Fitness and Wellness will begin in the last week of January
Exercise For Adults with Special Needs Instructor Certification Course will begin in February.

Check the online classes under College of Marin, Community Education Dept. or their catalog that just came out for Winter schedule. Or email me with any questions.

Presentations and Trainings
I am putting together my schedule of presentations this year. Hope to see you at ATRA, American Therapeutic Recreation Association in Phoenix. I am still working out the other presentations and will keep you up to date.

Sincerely,

Betsy Best-Martini MS CTRS
Certified Recreational Therapist #16983

Summer, 2011

FITNESS INSTRUCTOR GRADUATES
Congratulations to the newest graduates of the Exercise for Frail Elders Fitness Instructor Certification Course at College of Marin. My goal is to provide the best trained fitness instructors to older adult communities in Northern California counties. These students received certificates from American Senior Fitness Association as qualified instructors.




NEW CLASS
Boomer Fitness and Wellness will be a new offering at College of Marin in September, 2011. Students will not only be able to compare their fitness scores with other Californian's of the same age group, but learn more about wellness and all the components that integrate into a great quality of life. Contact me for more information.


ACTIVITY COORDINATOR TRAINING COURSE
This year's annual training to become certified as an activity coordinator will be offered on Tuesdays/Thursdays, September 6th-December 6th, 2011 at College of Marin Campus. This is one of only a few training courses in Northern California so I hope to see you then.


PUBLICATIONS

Exercise for Frail Elders- is soon to be in it's second edition. The new and comprehensive book that is a must have for all people leading exercise with older adults and frail elders will be available through Human Kinetics sometime in mid 2012. To access my publications click the "publications" link on this website.

Long Term Care, 6th Edition- is out and has been really well received. It is all updated for MDS 3.0 training, culture change, person centered programming and much more. Click the "publications" link to connnect to Idyll Arbor.Inc.

Happy Holidays and News about Upcoming Trainings & Publications

Happy Holidays to all of you!

Just a few updates regarding upcoming trainings and publications:

Publications:
Long Term Care, 6th edition, will be available from Idyll Arbor, Inc. in late December. This newest edition is new in many ways from MDS 3.0 to Culture Change to Updated forms and programs.

Trainings:
I am going to be teaching the Exercise for Frail Elders and Adults with Special Needs Trainer Certification Course in February through College of Marin, Community Ed. Dept. This will be 4 Saturday sessions. If you are interested in basic training as a fitness leader with this population, you can choose to take the first two sessions and receive a certificate of completion from College of Marin. If you continue on and complete the other two session, you will receive a certificate from the American Senior Fitness Association.
Contact me by email or phone with any questions.

Be Well,

Betsy Best-Martini MS CTRS
Certified Recreational Therapist #16983

September is right around the corner

Hello,
I hope your summer was great and relaxing. Now that we are near September, I wanted to give you an update on classes and presentations.

Strength and Flexibility for Adults: College of Marin. Kentfield, CA Wed/Fri 7:30 AM -9:00 AM. Starts September 8th, 2010

Activity Coordinator State Certification Training: College of Marin. Kentfield, CA Tu/TH 4:10-7:00 PM. Starts September 7th, 2010


Presentations I am giving:

Exercises that Promote Function: American Therapeutic Recreation Association Conference, Spokane, WA. September 15th,2010
MDS 3.0 -Documentation Guidelines: Marin Activity Coordinators, San Rafael, CA. September 22, 2010

Future Classes I will be teaching:
Strength, Flexibility and Balance, San Anselmo Parks and Recreation, January, 2011
Wellness Programs for Caregivers, College of Marin, January, 2011
Exercise for Frail Elders Train the Trainer Certification Course, College of Marin, January 2011
MDS 3.0 Documentation Training: Santa Rosa, CA. with Priscilla Wirth. TBA November
Please contact me regarding these trainings or with other questions,
Betsy

Happy New Year

I hope that the holidays have been good for all of you! Be sure to add physical activity to your new year's resolutions :)

My Classes coming up in 2010:

• Strength and Flexibility Class for Older Adults at College of Marin, Community Education Dept. begins in February.
• Certification Course for those interested in becoming fitness instructors with adults with special needs. This course will also be through College of Marin, Community Education Dept. in February

Publications:

The Long Term Care book is currently in it's 5th edition. This edition focuses in on Culture Change and Person-Centered Programming. In addition, I have created many forms for your use. Feel free to take the forms and modify them to work best for your setting. These forms are for all levels of care. Many can be used in your Quality Assurance Programs to assure internal review of important compliance areas.

Exercise for Frail Elders continues to be a magical book that has now been translated into Korean and Japanese. I am looking forward to a spanish translation sometime in the future. This book is being used as the "how to" teach exercise to older adults with special needs and frail elders book. We are very proud of the book and all of our wonderful "models" (all of whom are in our exercise classes).

Presentations and Consultation

• I am providing presentations on Culture Change and Person Centered Assessments and Programming. In addition, I am designing a Train the Trainer course for activity professionals who want more specifics regarding exercise programs that focus on strength, flexibility, balance and fall prevention.
• Many of the facilities that I consult with are going through their survey process quite well this year. Congratulations to each of you.
• Feel free to contact me with any questions regarding my one to one consultation services, "Best Solutions", for both exercise program design and recreational therapy interventions for dementia specific behaviors and issues.

Be Well,

Betsy

"Read More"

Click the "read more" to get the full new and updated Fall Blog

Betsy

September/October, 2009

Fall, 2009

Presentations

New York Foundation for Long Term Care's Recreation and Activity Professionals Conference: Verona, New York , August 13, 2009

• Best Solutions for Short Term Stay Rehabilitation Residents
• Medical Diagnosis for Activity Professionals
• Build the Program and They will Come: Motivating Staff

Marin Activity Coordinators (MAC)

San Rafael, CA. September 16, 2009

• Non-Pharmacological Interventions for Pain Management

Trainings

Activity Coordinator Training Course

College of Marin, September 15-December 10, 2009

Exercise for Frail Elders and Adults with Special Needs

Fitness Instructor Certification Class

This class will be offered through College of Marin, Community Education in January. I will give the specific dates as the time gets closer.

Books

Exercise for Frail Elders. 2003. Human Kinetics.

This publication is being used nationally and internationally as a training manual for those working with older adults teaching exercise. This book has sold over 7,700 copies as of this month and is making a difference in the functional fitness level of many older adults.

Long Term Care, 5th Edition. 2008. Idyll Arbor.

This training manual is now in it's 5th edition. It addresses the importance of culture change and person centered assessments and programming for all levels of care and settings for the elderly. The reader can use this as the most important text they need to provide quality of life programs in a variety of long term care settings.