Focusing on the future

Session Details Pending

Session Description Pending

Session Description Pending

Session Description Pending

In a high demand occupation where both you and your clients are in possible heightened stages of stress, how do you rise above the noise, take care of yourself, give the best care to your clients, connect with those around you to be a positive force in your community and beyond? In his signature keynote, "Rise Above the Noise" David will show you how to refresh yourself, renew your passions, and reconnect with the world through storytelling and communication. Through three stages, customized for this conference, he will use the acronym VRA: Values, Reception, and Alignment, to inspire you and give you practical tips on how to move forward with greater capacity for energy, meaning, and connection in your professional and personal life.

Speaker:

After being almost homeless several years ago, David Fisher is now an award-winning international speaker, coach, and story amplifier. David is one of the top ten speaking coaches in 2020 and 2022 (Yahoo Finance), and is also featured in CBS and NBC.

He has spoken to organizations and events internationally including: Cirque Du Soleil, Fraser Health, SPHlocal101, IxL2020, Voice Story, Storytelling for Life Transformation (Thailand), The Amazing Public Speaking Event (Indonesia), Supply Chain Canada, AWMAC, YVR Speaker Series, and Be Inspired. He has coached other speakers around the world for numerous events such as, TEDx Tenaya Paseo (Las Vegas), Tony Robbins Power of Success, Humanizing the Homeless (Toronto), and TEDx Stanley Park (Vancouver).

His communication clients include ReState (Switzerland), CNL (Toronto), Progressive Intercultural Community Services, IM Communications (Indonesia), Finance Industries in both the U.K. and the U.S., Volcano E (China), Eminence Education, and Future V. David graduated with high honors in speech communications through Wayne State, is a Certified Life, Life Story, and Goal Setting Coach, has certifications in both Psychological First Aid and Inclusive Leadership.

He is a certified Xperiential™ coach, and holds leadership and communication certifications through Toastmasters International and a Certificate of Business Communication through the Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia. He was also a member of the Screen Actors Guild and has several acting film credits to his name.

Through Kingfisher Communications and Amplify Your Story™ he has inspired thousands worldwide to create more impactful connections through communication and storytelling. David currently lives in Vancouver, BC Canada.

Vito Albanese, VP Claims Injury & Legal Services at ICBC (Insurance Corporation of British Columbia), will talk about ICBC’s move to a care based insurance model and how we will continue to work closely with Vocational Rehabilitation Professionals, with now two years into the implementation of Enhanced Care.

The move to Enhanced Care on May 1, 2021 marked a fundamental shift in the delivery of public automobile insurance in British Columbia – one that lowered the cost of insurance for drivers, and one that provides medical and rehabilitation benefits to all B.C. residents injured in a crash, regardless of fault.

Under Enhanced Care, ICBC can fund vocational rehabilitation services to support the customer in obtaining employment in a job and industry as close as possible to their pre-crash occupation, or for assessment-based services, so that ICBC can make fair insurance benefit funding decisions.

We are happy to participate in this year’s conference to share information about Enhanced Care and collaborate on ways we can work together to support our mutual clients in the future.

Speaker:

Vito Albanese (he/him) manages the overall handling of injury claims at ICBC. He works collaboratively with ICBC’s recovery partners to ensure that British Columbians injured in a crash get the quality care they need. Vito also works to keep ICBC’s claims on the right track and manages legal services for them.Vito has been with ICBC for over 30 years, holding senior-level positions in Claims and working with high-risk injury claims. He has a Bachelor's in Business Administration from Simon Fraser University.

As a musician at heart, he enjoys listening to all types of music.

As vocational rehabilitation practitioners, we strive to deliver the most effective services for all our clients, regardless of their dis/ability, and their summative life experience. To do this we need to follow the Platinum rule: “treat others as they want to be treated”. By doing this we work from a place of real respect, empathy, and curiosity, and subsequently from understanding. Our trans and non-binary clients may present for vocational services with barriers to employment that stem from the stigma, ignorance, and inexperience of employers, families, unions, and communities. It is hoped this presentation will provide learners with the opportunity to increase one’s ability to apply the Platinum rule with trans and non-binary clients thereby improving service – and outcomes – for this community.

Session learning objectives:

• Define the terms “gender identity”, “gender expression” as well as “sexual orientation’”
• Differentiate the terms binary and non-binary with reference to sex, gender, and sexuality
• Be able to complete the worksheets from the Gender Unicorn accurately, and feel confident explaining the contents
• Recognize the impact of discrimination on trans and non-binary people, and how this creates myriad challenges to the achievement of employment goals
• Identify a range of practical tools practitioners can use to improve service quality to trans and non-binary clients

Speaker:

Claire Benson-Mandl is a passionate, highly experienced vocational rehabilitation (VR) consultant and health coach who has helped hundreds of clients reach their health and career goals for over 25 years. She began her career in occupational rehabilitation in Australia in 1997, working first as a vocational rehabilitation consultant helping workers with illness and injury to recover and return to work, then qualifying a health psychologist in 1999. Over the years, she focussed her practice on the career redirection specialty. 

Since returning to Canada in 2004, Claire has applied her skills exclusively in the occupational rehabilitation context as a consultant, manager, mentor and association leader. Over the course of her career, she has trained and supervised dozens of new consultants, written policy, procedure and best-practice manuals, and taken on leadership opportunities in the industry. Above all, Claire has never lost sight of the reason for the work - to catalyze change in individuals who have encountered unexpected health-related challenges, and support them to regain of their health, their vitality, and their hope for the future.

Claire is a Registered Rehabilitation Professional (RRP - #3651), a member of the College of Vocational Rehabilitation Professionals (CVP -#1014), and a certified Martha Beck Wayfinder/Lifecoach. She is a past President of the BC Society of the Vocational Rehabilitation Association of Canada, and also a past member of the National Board.

‍

As vocational professionals, we may have training in psychological theories, and/or an understanding of counselling techniques.  Cognitive Behaviour Therapy techniques (CBT) or Motivational Interviewing strategies are often used within the VR process to assist the client to achieve their best potential. 

To enhance our understanding of these strategies and increase our confidence in using them, Karen will offer us simple practical tools. handouts and instruction that can be utilized with clients.

Speaker:

Karen has a Bachelor of Social Work degree from the University of Manitoba and is a Certified Vocational Rehabilitation Professional (CVRP) with the College of Vocational Professionals.

Karen brings six years of mental health counselling and employment support experience to her work as a vocational rehabilitation counsellor. This experience, combined with her mission to equip others with resources and build their motivation for change has empowered many clients to manage their mental health and disabilities and thrive in vocational wellness.

As a veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces, Sean has had to deal with PTSD for the better part of his life. In this session, Sean will talk about PTSD, from the definition of it to how it has affected him, with specific examples and experiences he has had to deal with, both good and bad. This interactive discussion with engage with participants to share their opinions and experiences of PTSD, as he discusses how he sought treatment and the Military. 

Speaker:

Sean joined the Military in 1990 and served approx. 13 years. He hasworked in the field of Logistics for over 32 years in both the Military and civilian service. He lives inNova Scotia with his wife Tracey and also enjoys travelling and being outdoors.

Join us as we explore how to navigate challenging ethical situations in an interactive forum that reviews case studies, addresses frequently asked questions, allows for discussion and to education members on specific insurance add-ons that are available. 

Pending

Ethics has been portrayed as the cod liver oil of conferences. It's good for you but can leave an unpleasant taste. The goal of this session is to engage attendees in an interactive, thought-provoking presentation in which they’ll be pleasantly engrossed, given the “dry” subject matter. The session will consist of a lecture punctuated by Socratic debate. Socratic debate is a form of cooperative argumentative dialogue between individuals, based on asking and answering questions to stimulate critical thinking and draw out ideas and underlying presumptions. 

By the end of this session, the learners will be able to:

• Describe foundational concepts as they relate to the interplay between ethics and professional conduct.
• Reflect upon and evaluate their professional conduct through an ethical lens. 
• Identify useful tools that will assist them in promoting excellence in their practice

Speaker:

Phillip is the president of Western Canadian Vocational Experts. He has been providing vocational rehabilitation services since 1997. Phillip provides forensic assessments for both plaintiff and defendants’ counsel and has been accepted as an expert witness in the field of vocational rehabilitation. Phillip has been an active volunteer in the vocational evaluation and vocational rehabilitation community. He has sat on numerous committees and served on a number of industry boards of directors including: VRAC, CAVEWAS, CVRP, as well as the American Board of Vocational Experts (ABVE). Phillip is also an instructor at Simon Fraser University and teaches the Professional Conduct and Ethics course for the Rehabilitation and Disability Management Diploma program. Phillip lives on Vancouver Island in the beautiful Comox Valley with his wife Lynn and dog Tsorcha. 

The goal of this presentation will be to assess and compare established and emerging codes of ethics. A comparison and assessment of these different ethical codes and guidelines as they may pertain to the

process of Vocational Counseling will assist each professional in further developing and understanding their own ethical roles.

The presentation will also highlight ethical issues for consideration, and address new and emerging areas of ethical consideration relating to technology, particularly in the era of Covid-19 and beyond.

Learning Objectives:

• Participants will have an understanding of the history, purpose, and objective of ethical codes.
• Participants will be able to understand the applicability of their own specific codes of ethics and impact on Vocational Counseling.
• Participants will have knowledge of other codes and guidelines outside their own practice within the field to further enhance their approach.
• Participants will have an understanding of the fundamental principles of areas of coexistent ethical guidelines.
• Participants will be able to identify ethical concern, areas where codes may be outdated, or incomplete, and where further development and updates may be needed.

Speaker:

Nick Choppa is a vocational rehabilitation counselor/case manager/life care planner with O.S.C. Vocational Systems, Inc.

His areas of expertise include vocational rehabilitation counseling, case management, records review, life care planning, past medical bill review and hands on case management including developing rehabilitation plans, job development and placement, and psychometric testing.

Mr. Choppa manages an independent case load, performing assessment and coordination of medical treatment with various medical providers. He also conducts labor market research and employment qualification assessments.

Mr. Choppa possesses knowledge of the medical aspects of disability. He earned his B.A. degree from The Evergreen State College and his M.A. degree from Western Washington University.

‍

This session will explore how beliefs about what leadership means/is for people in heart-centred professions can result in disastrous consequences and how our beliefs need to change so that our future changes.

“In 2020, just as the first wave of the pandemic was starting to ease slightly, I had a stress-induced heart attack at work. To say the least this was a surprise to me. I took 2021 to regain my health, re-prioritize my life, work on my stress level, and generally clean up my act. Only to have a second, more serious, heart attack in November of that year. This profound experience left me wondering what to do next - especially as the cardiologist was telling me the second was “just bad luck.”

While both heart attacks taught me profound lessons about health, beliefs, and especially what I believed about "good" leadership, the second one quite literally shocked me into realizing that even when you do the most loving things for your body to recover – there isn’t always full recovery. The time to shake up your life is BEFORE something happens. Which is hard for us heart-centered people who are always doing for others…because it means putting ourselves fundamentally first every single day. Before our kids. Before our partners. Before our jobs. We were not raised this way.”

Speaker:

Christina has worked in the healthcare field for over 20 years, first as the Executive Director for the Canadian Mental Health Association in  Duncan, Nanaimo and ultimately Courtenay branches and then in many supporting positions in Island Health - the public health authority organization for  Vancouver Island. For the past 8 years, she was the Site Director for the  Campbell River Hospital and was responsible for the overall site functioning  -- bringing together a diverse range of professions under different management structures to function as a cohesive whole system. The biggest success of her career was the successful design, build and move into both new hospitals in our communities. Focusing on the teamwork that was needed to do  this successfully was on her plate from day 1 in the position. She has a  Bachelor’s Degree in Literature from the University of Victoria and an MA in Rehabilitation and Disability Studies from the University of Calgary, and she did PhD studies at UVIC for Studies in Policy and Practice in Social and Health  Services.