Information for Health and social care providers

Professional development

1. Interprofessional course for rehabilitation professionals

Rehabilitation in the Context of HIV: An Interprofessional Course for Occupational Therapists, Physiotherapists, Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists is a course designed for rehabilitation professionals to increase their knowledge and skills in responding to the needs of people living with HIV. It was created in partnership with the Canadian Physiotherapy Association (CPA), the Canadian Association for Occupational Therapists (CAOT) and the Canadian Association of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists (CASLPA) and can be used in:

• university curricula
• continuing medical education by professional organizations
• continuing medical education in clinical settings.

Course content

The one-and-a-half-day course uses an interprofessional and case-based learning approach to explore best practices. It is facilitated by rehabilitation professionals and persons living with HIV. Content includes:

• epidemiology, transmission and progression of HIV
• rehabilitation-related impairments, activity limitations and participation restrictions
• emerging rehabilitation issues for individuals living with HIV e.g., return to work, stroke, transplants, HIV and aging
• potential interventions
• issues related to sensitive practice e.g., gender, stigma and multiple vulnerabilities
• available resources, programs and tools

Where is the course offered?

CWGHR will assist individuals and organizations that are interested in offering the curriculum as a complete course or in modules. For more information, please email us or call 416-513-0440.

Future plans

CWGHR continues to work with universities and educational institutions to incorporate this curriculum into existing programs. We also hope to offer a web-based distance learning option in the future.

2. General workshop

CWGHR offers half-day or full-day workshops across Canada on the latest research and clinical practice in the area of rehabilitation and HIV/AIDS.

These interactive workshops are designed to meet the needs of a variety of stakeholders involved in rehabilitation and HIV issues, including:

• HIV physicians and nurses
• rehabilitation professionals
• volunteers and staff from community-based organizations
• AIDS support workers
• vocational counselors
• policy makers
• researchers, and
• people living with HIV and their caregivers.

Content and format

CWGHR works with local partner organizations to plan, promote and deliver workshops. The local partners decide the format and learning objectives of the workshop and help to identify participants and presenters. Content can be adapted to the meet the needs of the participants. Topic areas may include:

• expanded definitions of rehabilitation and a holistic approach to care delivery
• impact of the episodic nature of HIV
• rehabilitation skills and knowledge in the context of HIV
• role of rehabilitation in symptom and side-effect management, and
• available tools and resources.

CWGHR provides the following to support its local partners:

• assistance in designing the workshop/course
• facilitators and presenters
• workshop manual (PDF: 493 KB)
• list of resource materials available through CWGHR and/or the Canadian HIV/AIDS Information Centre

If you are interested in finding out more or would like to hold a workshop in your organization or community, please email us or call 416-513-0440.

3. Episodic disabilities workshops

CWGHR also offers workshops on episodic disabilities. The workshops are intended for professionals and organizations that serve people with episodic disabilities and address:

• issues faced by individuals with episodic disabilities, and
• strategies to address these issues.

To find out more, please email us or call 416-513-0440.

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