2020 HEALTH CARE PROVIDER OF THE YEAR NOMINEE

Kindrey Rowland

Nominated For: HEALTH CARE PROVIDER OF THE YEAR

Kindrey is a community Speech-Language Pathologist dedicated to helping people communicate following acquired brain injury. Kindrey is also deeply passionate about supporting people living with ABI in her community. Kindrey is a founding member and Co-chair of the Headwaters Acquired Brain Injury Group, (HABI), a support group for people with ABI and their families under the umbrella of the Ontario Brain Injury Association. HABI celebrated its 10th anniversary in December 2019. The Mayor of Orangeville made a special presentation to Kindrey during the 10th anniversary celebration in honour and appreciation of her volunteerism and commitment to HABI. Over the past 10 years Kindrey has supported the group to:

• hold monthly meetings for people with lived experience with ABI and their friends and families
• bring over 50 guest speakers to the Headwaters Region to provide education and inspiration
• bring OBIA’s “Brain Basics” workshop to the Headwaters Region four times to train local providers and caregivers about acquired brain injury
• bring OBIA’s Caregiver Workshop to Orangeville in 2019
• organize social events (e.g., Blue Jays games, Ontario Science Centre, Medieval Times) with HABI members in partnership with other brain injury support organizations (e.g., Mind Forward, BIST, COTA)
• present on topics such as assistive technology, social communication strategies, return to school following ABI, and strategies for communication following concussion

Kindrey also supports the brain injury community through her volunteer work with the Acquired Brain Injury Interest Group for the Ontario Association of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists (OSLA). Kindrey was chair of this group from 2012 to 2018 and she continues as an active member. In this role, she led the group to:

• develop and distribute educational resources to front line providers, stakeholders, and individuals and families living with acquired brain injury
• advocate for change to the auto insurance sector to promote fairness for people injured in motor vehicle collisions
• She chaired OSLA’s biennial Brainstorming Brain Injury Conference/ Mark Ylvisaker Honorary Lecture Award Series for the last decade and continues in the chairperson role. This conference series brings international guest lecturers to Ontario to train therapists working in the area of acquired brain injury partnering with agencies such as Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, Toronto Rehab and the Ontario Neurotrauma Foundation. Guest lecturers have included Dr. Mark Ylvisaker (2008), and Mark Ylvisaker Honorary Lecture Award Recipients – Dr. Leanne Togher (2011), Dr. Tim Feeney (2013), Dr. Roberta DePompei (2015), Dr. Lyn Turkstra (2017) and Sheila MacDonald (2019).

In addition to her volunteer efforts to support the brain injury community, Kindrey is a dedicated Speech-Language Pathologist who has been serving children and adults with acquired brain injury for twenty-four years. She is a collaborative and dedicated team member with a “can do” approach to rehabilitation. Kindrey focuses on helping people living with brain injury communicate to the best of their ability in functional, real world contexts so they can return to rich, meaningful lives. In addition to working full-time clinically in her private practice, Kindrey is also an Assistant Clinical Professor (Adjunct) at McMaster University, Department of Rehabilitation Sciences.

At her clinic, Kindrey has mentored over one hundred local student volunteers who are interested in learning more about speech-language pathology and people living with acquired brain injury. She is also a clinical supervisor for Speech-Language Pathology Master’s students from McMaster University. Kindrey’ s private practice, the Orangeville Speech & Language Clinic, recently won “Best Speech Therapy Services” in Dufferin County in the 2019 Reader’s Choice awards. Kindrey is honoured to be nominated for Health Care Provider of the Year 2020.