A Message from the ATRA Board

A Message from the ATRA Board of Directors

To our dismay, several inaccurate rumors have reached our ears, and we suspect you have heard them

as well. Recently, someone has circulated information that the ATRA Board passed a motion that only

CTRSs who have a doctor’s order can practice recreational therapy. This statement is FALSE. The Board

recognizes that recreational therapy is practiced in a variety of settings. Some agencies have regulations

that require a physician’s order while others do not. Much of the inaccurate information being

disseminated is centered on the Standards of Practice Revisions. The Board has passed a motion to

approve the latest draft of the revisions in order to move forward to develop a process to gain

membership input and comment. Please look for more information on that process in the near future.

The ATRA Board members are committed to transparency with the ATRA membership and welcome

input, thoughts, and concerns. Some of the actions that members will see from the Board will include a

schedule of meetings at conferences, which are open to the public as well as a list of scheduled board

calls that happen between Board meetings, which are also open to the public. Minutes from meetings

will be posted on the ATRA website unless designated as a closed meeting. Until these procedures are

in place, the Board requests that members accept accurate information from only the current Board

members of ATRA and official ATRA communication such as the newsletter, ATRA updates and the ATRA

website. This Board is committed to serving the membership of ATRA, adhering to the by‐laws and

policies and procedures of ATRA, and upholding the standards and ethics of the Association.

We ask you to please use your best professional judgment to evaluate the information you hear

regarding ATRA and to question the sources of information. To date, this is the first and only official

ATRA communication about this matter. Anything else you may have heard so far can only be

considered gossip. As each of you know rumors and gossip can only serve to undermine and to divide.

Now more than ever, we need to move forward together.

We are a member organization, and your elected Board of Directors is committed to serving you and the

Association to the best of our abilities. We thank you for your dedication to your clients, for your

passion for the profession, and for your service to ATRA. There is much work ahead, and we look

forward to continuing our work together.

ATRA BOD

Diane Skalko, Carolee Rodrigo, Lisa Morgan, Nancy Navar, Audra Gibson, Michael Sutherland,

Richard Williams, Tim Passmore