Aquatic Exercise Association

Beginner / Full-Day Workshop

Faculty: Ruth Sova, MS, ATRIC

COURSE DESCRIPTION:
“Intro” is an informative full-day workshop for those health professionals who would like to expand skills into aquatic therapy and rehab, review for the ATRI certification, or see what changes have occurred in the field.

Aquatic therapy and rehabilitation is a growing market and provides an excellent service to clients.  “Intro” offers the most current essential information you need to get confident in the concepts, compare the efficacy and outcomes to land-based therapy, try several popular aquatic therapy protocols during the in-pool lab, and access resources for more in-depth knowledge.

Aquatic Principles: The seminar will include basic aquatic principles including buoyancy, resistance, and hydrostatic pressure, and how those principles change the biomechanics of movement patterns.  Participants will experience how the principles affect balance, stabilization and mobility, and how to use laminar flow, turbulence, and positional variations to improve the client’s benefits.  Some terminology is reviewed.

Outcomes: Aquatic therapy is shown to improve function in certain clients more rapidly than traditional therapies.  A review of outcomes (who aquatic rehab works for, indications and contraindications, what diagnoses it helps, why it’s helpful, and when to use it) and the concepts of aquatic therapy protocols are discussed.

Techniques: We will determine the concepts and methodology of popular aquatic therapy and rehabilitation techniques, patient populations that these modalities can work for, and discuss competency and where to learn more about each.

Specialized Clientele: Participants will determine which techniques are safe and appropriate for which specialized clientele. Specific aquatic therapeutic interventions for older adults, the obese, children, people with arthritis, fibromyalgia, back pain, knee pain, diabetes, CAD, asthma and COPD, cerebral palsy, hearing and vision impairments, CVA, hip replacements, DD, GI track problems, Parkinson’s, MS, osteoporosis, shoulder problems, prenatal women, and athletes are discussed.

Pool Lab: Finally, this presentation will allow participants to experiment with the basic concepts of Ai Chi, Ai Chi Ne, Bad Ragaz, AquaStretch^TM, PNF, Halliwick, UCT, the Burdenko Method, BackHab, and Watsu® in the pool.

COURSE OBJECTIVES:
1) Participants will be introduced to basic hydrodynamic principles and their beneficial effects on clients.
2) Participants will experience several major aquatic protocols.
3) Participants will compare very different aquatic protocol concepts.
4) Participants will match their client situations with one or two aquatic protocols.
5) Participants will analyze modifications and precautions, indications and contraindications of each aquatic technique with each client need.
6) Participants will access aquatic therapy and rehabilitation resources.
7) Participants will examine and apply aquatic therapy equipment to sample patients.

FACULTY: Ruth Sova, MS, ATRIC, president of the Aquatic Therapy & Rehab Institute, served on the Wisconsin Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness, received the Governor’s Entrepreneurial Award, the IDEA Outstanding Business Award, the first Presidential Sports Award in aquatic exercise, and AEA’s Contribution to the Industry Award. She has authored eighteen books and over 50 DVDs and CDs. She is known for her work in aquatic fitness, aquatic therapy, BackHab, Ai Chi and creating connections with other aquatic, health and therapy organizations.