Course Information

Course Name:

A Step Ahead: Effective Management of Excessive Pronation (webinar)

Course Description:

This course is designed to introduce the participant to a growth learning model for patients with hypotonia and excessive pronation. Treatment of excessive and symptomatic pronation is important to aiding proper postural control and gait development in young children. While there are many orthotic treatment solutions, understanding the benefits of circumferential compression and triplanar control will help the participant effectively develop orthotic treatment plans. In this course, we will discuss the evaluation, fitting, follow up and graduation of orthotic treatment using Surestep SMOs. We will also express the importance of collaboration of the health care team and family education. This course will include multiple interactive portions where the participant will learn this material from a fresh perspective.

Course/learner objective:

-Understand how to collaborate with care team members and integrate knowledge for best patient outcomes.

-Understand typical foot and ankle development

-Identify excessive and symptomatic pronation

-Assess children who present with excessive pronation and formulate an orthotic treatment plan

-Understand when to graduate a child from an orthotic treatment plan

-Apply this knowledge to evaluate patients who present with excessive and symptomatic pronation

-Understand orthotic objectives and how to choose appropriate devices to achieve these goals

-Apply this knowledge to effectively communicate with families

Outline: (2.0 Hours (120 min) / 2 Contact Hours)

-Introduction (5 min) - Establish health care team, introduce course structure

-Learned Knowledge Interactive Learning Module (10 min) – Explore and understand learned knowledge of excessive pronation and its natural history

-Discussion (10 min) – Takeaways from module, introduction to red flags

-Experiential Knowledge Interactive Learning Module (15 min) – Explore and understand experiential knowledge, traditional interventions (shoes & orthoses) and the effects on postural control and gait

-Discussion (10 min) – Takeaways from module, additional red flags, consequences of traditional treatment

-Integrative Knowledge Interactive Learning Module (30 min) – Explore and understand integrative knowledge, benefits of early orthotic intervention to provide dynamic stability, potential changes in postural control, motor skills and gait (short & long term)

-Discussion (10 min) – Takeaways from module, orthotic objectives, importance of family education & care team collaboration

-Now What Interactive Learning Module (20 min) – Learn what to do after a patient outgrows their SMOs. Understand when to provide new SMOs, graduate or move up to the BigShot SMOs.

-Discussion / Close (10 min) – Takeaways from module, Q & A

Speaker: Anne Paré, CO/LO

Anne W Paré, Certified Orthotist is currently a practicing orthotist specializing in pediatrics in Houston, Texas. Anne is the founder and part owner of Transcend Orthotics in Houston (formerly Hope Orthotics), an ABC accredited facility and member of AOPA. Anne graduated from University of Texas Southwestern Allied Health Sciences School in 1993 and completed a pediatric internship at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital in Dallas in 1994. She worked as a staff orthotist at The Institute for Rehabilitation and Research in Houston Texas before opening Hope Orthotics. For over 20 years, Anne has specialized in pediatrics, spinal cord and brain injury, working closely with many therapists and healthcare professions to provide superior service and quality care to the Greater Houston area. Anne has been active in both Texas and National Conferences in Orthotics and Prosthetics and has spoken on the subjects of the orthotic management of the pediatric patient on multiple occasions. Anne’s current clinical focus is on improving the quality and efficiency of her patient’s gait through analysis using the GAITrite and ZENO Gait Electronic Walkways and the Protokinetics Movement Analysis Software in conjunction with orthotic intervention.

Speaker: Steve Kulifaj, CO/BOCP/LO

Steve Kulifaj, CO, BOCP, LO is a certified and licensed Orthotist/Prosthetist who has over 16 years of clinical experience. With caring consistent focus on pediatrics, Steve was a lead Orthotist for a pediatric specialty team in Minnesota, co-founded a 3 facility O&P pediatric based practice in Minnesota, and is multi-state recognized for his passion for challenging scoliosis treatment and lower extremity bracing. Steve provided pediatric care in Detroit and Minneapolis Children’s Hospitals, Hennipin County Medical Center’s pediatric specialty clinic, and formed multi-state pediatric teams. Coupling strong business acumen with expansive clinical knowledge, Steve was awarded the position of Chief Executive Officer for an innovative medical company and remains a board member today. A passion for educating and lecturing, marketing and clinical advancement, and sheer commitment to the field of O&P, Steve was carefully chosen as the Director of Education for Surestep.

Speaker: Josh Ahlstrom, CPO/LPO

Josh Ahlstrom, CPO/LPO is an ABC Certified and licensed Prosthetist/Orthotist with 20 years of clinical experience.  He has spent the last 14 years focused specifically on providing exceptional care for children with a vast array of pathologies and presentations.  In 2004, Josh opened a pediatric O&P facility in Indianapolis, which eventually grew to 5 offices providing care across 3 states.  Throughout his career he has enjoyed working with numerous children’s hospitals, specialty clinics and physical therapy facilities.  Josh has been cited in numerous publications, while also lecturing across the country, and internationally, on a variety of topics related to pediatric orthotics.  He was also instrumental in the development of the Indy 2 Stage and Pullover AFOs in the SureStep product lineup.  Josh’s current role of Business Development Specialist with Midwest Orthotic Services affords him the opportunity to mentor other offices and practitioners, while also exposing him to a wide range of business models, clinical settings and demographics.  His passion for learning, problem solving, teaching and developing relationships with others continues to drive him today to pursue better outcomes for the patients, families and referral sources he serves.

Speaker: Curt Bertram, CPO, FAAOP

Curt Bertram, CPO, FAAOP is an ABC certified orthotist/prosthetist and Fellow of the American Academy of Orthotists and Prosthetists (AAOP) with 30 years of clinical experience.  He has a BS degree in Engineering from Northern Arizona University and post graduate certificates in orthotics and prosthetics from Northwestern University and the University of Hartford, respectively.  He is a member of the Association of Children’s Prosthetic-Orthotics Clinics (ACPOC), The American Academy of Orthotists and Prosthetists (AAOP), American Orthotic & Prosthetic Association Prosthetic (AOPA) and currently holds the position of Residency Director for Transcend Orthotics & Prosthetics.  Additionally, Curt actively serves on several association committees for the profession and has served as the president of the board of directors for the American Board for Certification in Orthotics, Prosthetic, and Pedorthics (ABC).  Throughout his career, Curt’s clinical focus has been in pediatrics and he has presented both nationally and internationally on a variety of topics regarding the orthotic management of children.