Question & Answer - Treatment Materials

What is "The Therapy Share?"

I have been an occupational therapist working in the same skilled nursing facility for four years now.  To say at times that I fall into treatment ruts would be an understatement.  I am always looking for new treatment ideas and resources to use with my patients.  Some challenges I have found when trying to find resources is that either the material is copyrighted and I have to pay an outrageous amount of money to even consider using it, or the material I am looking for is not easy to access.  I have spent hours searching the internet for therapy protocols, educational handouts, or safety worksheets to share with my patients or their caregivers.  I have even surrendered at times and just made my own quick handouts for my patients.  I worked alongside a dear friend who had the same issue as a speech-language pathologist working in the same setting before she left to work in the schools.  Together we shared our concerns regarding access to creative materials and came up with a solution!  After coffee shop meetings and late night text messages once our four little boys were in bed, we created TheTherapyShare.com. 

TheTherapyShare.com is a new website devoted toward enhancing the ease of access to creative and original healthcare resources in order to enrich the lives of those we serve.  The design of the site is that of an online marketplace where healthcare professionals can upload their digital content to sell or share with their colleagues.  After much market research we found the most receptive populations to initially target were occupational therapists, physical therapists, speech-language pathologists, and dietitians/nutritionists, but we hope to expand to encompass all healthcare professions.  The types of resources that are appropriate for uploading to the website are limitless.  These include patient worksheets, home exercise programs, quick reference guides, tip sheets for patients, protocols, caregiver handouts, etc.  The website is growing rapidly, but there is still a great need for more resources to be uploaded to the site. 

If you are a practicing therapist who has created some of your own materials (or have always wanted to, but just need that little extra push) please consider visiting TheTherapyShare.com and uploading your resources for FREE.  The website also gives users the opportunity to create their own marketplace on the site where they can include their biography along with links to their social media platforms or businesses.

Our main goal is to create a one stop shop type of atmosphere for healthcare professionals to network and exchange their valuable information.  We hope others will join our mission and make The Therapy Share a great success! 

As our site grows we see it as a valuable tool for both health care professionals looking for more resources to incorporate into their everyday practice and for parents and families to carry over at home.  Some resources are geared toward use only by professionals; however, some resources would be great tools for parents and families for educational purposes or to work with children or adults during breaks from professional therapy intervention. 

About Us

The Therapy Share was founded by Christi Dawson and Deirdre Newburn. Christi obtained her BS and MA in speech-language pathology and has experience in both geriatric and pediatric settings.  She’s currently working in her local school system providing exceptional services to children by thinking outside of the box with her treatments. Deirdre began her career with a BS in neuroscience and then went on to obtain her MA in Clinical Psychology. After spending some time with an occupational therapy mentor she decided to pursue a career in occupational therapy.  She is currently working in a skilled nursing facility as an OTR/L, and she also provides pediatric evaluations for children who attend virtual charter schools.  You can contact us at The Therapy Share thetherapyshare@gmail.com.