RehabCare

Making the Most of Your ASHA Experience

The flights have all been booked, hotel reservations made, mardi gras beads and masks have all been packed-you're ready for your visit to "The Big Easy".....or are you?  It's your first national convention and although you'd never admit it, you're filled with fear and trepidation about what the week is to hold.  Have no fear! RehabCare is  here to help you make the most of your ASHA 2009 experience.  Here are a few tips you may want to remember:

1. Prepare to be Overwhelmed- When you first walk into the exhibit hall it is totally okay to feel slightly overwhelmed at the sight of hundreds of booths teeming with thousands of professionals and students just like yourself.  Just remember that if you have a plan and work through the booths methodically you can stop and see everyone you would like to meet.  

2. Know Which Booths You Want to Visit- Whether you have heard great things about a company, you've been in communication with someone, or your professor recommends an exhibitor to you, know ahead of time who you want to visit.  Often companies will send you a postcard that is good for some type of giveaway (or an added chance at winning a mini laptop).  These are good things to keep in a folder and take with you.  And, of course, if you go nowhere else, stop by booth 1315 and get a very cool giveaway and enter to win RehabCare's Mini Laptop!  

3. Use the Resources Provided- On their website ASHA offers a very useful tools called "My Planner".  This program gives you access to search the over 1700 education sessions.  It gives you the ability to organize your selected sessions into one easy-to-read page that shows where you need to be and when you need to be there.  My Planner also lets you add appointments, hotel information, and exhibitors you want to visit.  This tool is very helpful.  I'd highly recommend you utilize it to help you make the most of your experience.  

4. Know What You Want to Ask- With graduation nearing your head is full of questions about what comes next.  Have some of these questions ready to ask the companies you meet.  Some questions you may want to ask include, "What kind of benefits do you offer?", "What locations do you have near me?", "Does your company offer tuition assistance or tuition reimbursement?", "Do you provide money to assist with CEU's?", and "Do you offer a mentorship program?".  Knowing in advance the questions you'd like answered will help you direct the conversation in a way that is most useful to you.  

Using these few short tips will help you make the most of your experience at the ASHA convention this year!  Have a great time and remember to come by and see RehabCare at Booth 1315.  We will be giving away a mini laptop.  And don't forget to enjoy a little Jambalaya and Crawfish Etouffe while you're in New Orleans!

Shenandoah University Students Talk About AOTA 2009

While attending the AOTA conference in Houston, Shenandoah University students Amanda and Autumn stopped by our booth and talked to us for a few minutes about what they liked about the conference and RehabCare!  Check out the video we shot while we were there! Thanks to Amanda and Autumn for taking the time to speak with us.

APTA CSM-Day 2

Rick LaCourse and Tim Makowski are excited to share more information about RehabCare at Combined Sections in Las Vegas, NV.

Day 2 of Combined Sections was a huge success! We have met around 700 people in the last two days.  Whew!  We have been busy to say the least!!  We may have been busy, but it's been well worth it.  We have been able to meet some really great people and share with them all that RehabCare has to offer.  If you haven't stopped by our booth yet be sure to do so sometime today!  We're located in booth 1244 so come by and say hi.  We'd love to share with you about some of the exciting things that are happening at RehabCare and how we can help you as a student or a therapy professional. (And don't forget to register to win the Dell Mini laptop!!)

Regional Director of Operations Tim Makowski speaks with a few ladies about RehabCare at APTA Combined Sections in Las Vegas, NV.

APTA CSM-Day 1

We're here at the APTA Combined Sections Meeting at Mandalay Bay Las Vegas.  Things are going great!  We are meeting a lot of excellent students as well as many great therapy professionals.  Stop by our booth (#1244) and see exactly why RehabCare is "Your Winning Hand"!

RehabCare Campus Relations Manager Lauren Brody and Regional Director of Operations Tim Makowski pose for a picture at the RehabCare booth.

AOTA Student Conclave - Recap

This year, the 2nd annual AOTA Student Conclave was held in suburban Chicago (Wheeling).  With approximately 600 OT and OTA students in attendance, it was more than a success!  We had the opportunity to speak with students from across the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.  One of the best parts is to hear their stories about why they chose to go into the profession - they had an injury and required therapy at some point in their life; they have a relative with a debilitating disease and were inspired to help others; they want to help the elderly regain their independence...the list goes on and on.   

  Campus Managers Jill FitzGerald and Josh McMikle are ready to meet students at the AOTA Student Conclave!

Campus Managers Jill FitzGerald, Josh McMikle along with Directors of Operation Erik Painter and Angie Sylvan meet with students during exhibit hours.

And the Winner is...

We recently participated in the PT College Recruiting Career Fair at the University of Texas - San Antonio.  We met with a large number of PT students from schools all over the great state of Texas including the student that you will meet on the video.  This student was the grand prize winner at our recruiting booth, and we ran into him again during the PT Olympic Event immediately following the Career Fair.   

RehabCare Student/New Grad Open House

    

The Results Are In!

We recently took a survey of therapy students to help us better understand your wants and needs.  We've tabulated the results and come up with some very interesting statistics.

When I mention statistics your stomach may become instantly nauseated by thoughts of your sophomore Stats professor giving long dissertations about z-scores, standard deviations, and box and whisker plots. Put your graphing calculators back in the desk drawer because all the calculations have been done for you!  (Don't you wish that was the case in stats class?) 

Below are just some of the things you told us by taking our survey.

RehabCare Chatapalooza-- Chat Like Your Future Depends on it.

The first-ever RehabCare Chatapalooza was a huge success!  We had several students log on and chat about everything from OpportunityU to current job openings.  Thanks again to everyone that stopped by!  It was great speaking with all of you.  Below you will find the text from last night's Chatapalooza. 
 

Practice Makes Perfect

I just recently held an Interview Day at the University of Missouri. I invited the physical therapy and occupational therapy students of 2008 to attend this event. The purpose of the event was two-fold. First, I encouraged the students to sign up for a time to meet with an operator from the field to practice and perfect their interviewing skills. Second, the operator was able to share with the students not only the opportunities that are available to them but feedback on their interviewing skills and resume. Prior to the event helpful hints and examples were shared with the students to start them down the right path. The event itself went off without a hitch. Not only did each student do a superb job with interviewing but they also learned of many positions that were of interest to them and realized that now is not too early to start searching for the perfect job. If you are interested in holding a similar event at your school and beginning your preparation for the professional world, please contact the RehabCare Campus Relations Manager in your area.