NEWS RELEASE

June 28, 2005

Contact: Laurie Jake, ATRA Communications Coordinator

Phone (480) 460-1525 or

Ann Huston, ATRA Executive Director
Phone: (703) 683-9420

NYS Department of Health Dementia Grants Program Awards Grant

To Recreational Therapy Program

(Alexandria, VA) The NYS Department of Health Dementia Grants Program awarded ATRA member Nettie Harper with a dementia research grant in the amount of $189,717.00. The grant, titled: “Developing A Person-Centered Therapeutic Recreation Dementia Program” was selected for funding by the NYS Department of Health Dementia Grants Program. The award letter indicated, “In a very competitive process, yours was one of 15 selected for funding.”

According to Harper, the two goals of the grant are (1) Person Centered caregiving and CNA empowerment principles on a dementia special care unit, and (2) using the ATRA Dementia Practice Guidelines in the CNA’s role with the assistance of the TR department.

Former ATRA Board member, Dr. Linda Buettner, will serve as a consultant for the project. Harper, who will serve as the project director stated, “It is definitely an exciting opportunity to show that recreational therapy is beneficial to persons with Alzheimer’s.”

ATRA President, Nancy McFarlane, CTRS, stated, “I want to offer my sincere appreciation to the New York State Department of Health Dementia grants program for their commitment to support programs which improve the health and quality of life for persons who are chronically ill, disabled.”

For more information about recreational therapy, please contact the ATRA National Office at (703) 683-9420.

The American Therapeutic Recreation Association (ATRA) was founded in 1984 to advance the profession of therapeutic recreation. ATRA is a non-profit, professional membership organization dedicating 100% of resources and efforts to promote therapeutic recreation professionals in health care and human service settings. For more information, please contact the ATRA National Office.