Sienna Caspar

Sienna received a B.Sc. in Therapeutic Recreation from the University of South Alabama in 1990. She has worked in long-term care facilities in both Canada and the United States for over 20 years as both a certified therapeutic recreation specialist (CTRS) and a consultant. She is the author of the MARRCC (Measurable Assessment in Recreation for Resident-Centred Care). From 2003 to 2007 she was a national trainer for the American Therapeutic Recreation Association's Dementia Practice Guideline for the non-pharmacological treatment of behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia. In 2008, she received a MA in Gerontology from Simon Fraser University. Her thesis explored the relationship between care staff empowerment and the ability to provide person-centred care in long-term care settings. She continued to study this important topic at the University of British Columbia, where she completed her PhD in the Interdisciplinary Studies Graduate Program. Currently, she is an Associate Professor at the University of Lethbridge in the Bachelor of Therapeutic Recreation program. She is passionate about the outdoors—her current leisure interests include outrigger canoeing, drumming, stand up paddle boarding, running, cycling, hiking, and going on long walks.

Experience

18 years in long-term care – Focus on horticulture, art, group fitness, group drum facilitation, sensory stimulation, music making, reduction of social isolation, cognitive stimulation, and social engagement. Disabilities: Alzheimer’s Disease, Frontotemporal Dementia, Lewy Body Dementia, Vascular Dementia, Parkinson’s Disease, stroke/cerebral vascular accident (CVA), multiple sclerosis (MS), traumatic brain injury (TBI).

10 years consultant and trainer – Dementia care specialist; consultant in best practice in TR in long-term care settings; national trainer for the American Therapeutic Recreation Association's Dementia Practice Guideline for the non-pharmacological treatment of disturbing behaviours.

9 years teaching with specialization in distance learning - Utilizes best-practice in developing on-line courses:

• Highly interactive on-line learning environment
• Records lectures to enable students to still feel like they are “in the classroom” with the instructor
• Offers creative group learning activities in the on-line platform
• Ensures students have direct and meaningful interaction with the instructor
• Creates learning opportunities for a variety of different learning styles