FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 3, 2008
CONTACT: Chris Boyle, Communications Manager
860.545.9956 or pager 860.220.3569 

"BACKPACKS AND BACK PAIN" PRESENTATION TO KICK OFF CCMC’S FREE SPRING HOME SERIES

HARTFORD, Conn.—Connecticut Children’s Medical Center’s Department of Education and Rehabilitation Services will kick off its spring HOME Series with a presentation entitled “Backpacks and Back Pain.” The presentation takes place from 7 to 8:30 pm, Thursday, April 17, at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center’s Farmington satellite, located at 399 Farmington Ave.

The presenters for Backpacks and Back Pain include staff from the medical center’s Occupational and Physical Therapy Department. Heather Hill, MPT; Jason Booker, PT and Laurie Anorga, PT will discuss how to determine the proper weight of a child’s backpack or book bag, as well as how to decrease the backpack weight. In addition, they will be discussing how poor sitting and standing posture can contribute to back pain. The benefits of an individualized therapy program to help ease back pain also will be presented.

Connecticut Children’s HOME Series (Have fun, Open discussions, Motivate kids, Empower families) are presentations designed to help educate caregivers and parents on a wide variety of subjects with presentations by experts in pediatric occupational and physical therapy, speech/language pathology, and audiology.

There is no charge for the HOME Series presentations, however reservations are requested. To RSVP or for more information on Backpacks and Backpain, please call (860) 545-8600. There will be a question and answer session included at the end of each presentation and light refreshments will be served.