Platform: 2024 Issue 1

ISSUE 1

“We’re always looking to the future, and we want them to be just as happy five years from now as they are today�”

CHANGING STUDENTS’ LIVES ON A MAJOR SCALE

When a prominent school system plans a sizable investment in multi-sensory environments (MSE), who should they call?

Southpaw�

When the Jefferson County Public Schools in Louisville, Kentucky, was planning a total of 14 sensory rooms across their school district, that’s exactly what they did.

Southpaw worked with Dr. Renee Scheckelhoff, Licensed Clinical Psychologist and Mental Health Practitioner, and school counselor Rebecca Cord to create spaces specifically designed to answer the sensory challenges of students across the district. Until now, there was no place for students with sensory needs to go when they needed to regulate their emotions or simply calm down.

Beyond the traditional schools within the district, there was also a need to create sensory rooms for the special needs of the Waller-Williams Environmental School, whose students are challenged with severe and profound emotional and behavioral disabilities.

Rebecca said, “We knew what a sensory room was, but it isn’t something that is in a lot of schools. Southpaw really did a great job of showing us how to make their products relevant for a school setting with behavioral kids. They helped us create anything but a basic room. It’s one that our kids are excited to use.”

Dr. Renee added, “Southpaw helped us to think outside of the box and meet those needs, which include the ability to both calm down and de-escalate emotions amongst our Waller-Williams Environmental School students.”

Give your clients the benefit of a combination of linear movement and proprioceptive and tactile feedback with the Wireless Vibro Rocker

As you create a calming, sensory-rich experience for them, you’ll also be combining vestibular input from the rocking motion, proprioceptive and tactile input from the foam of the chair, and audio input from the wireless amplifier that connects via Bluetooth to your favorite music source. All of this sensory input is combined into a single activity that supports the brain’s ability to better synthesize and more effectively organize sensory information.

According to Tom Marshall, Director of MSE Sales at Southpaw, the most successful jobs start when his team is brought in early: “We can save time and money for our clients by being part of the initial planning. That means that we can come in before the electrical work is complete or the build-out is done.

“We can look at your blueprints and determine if you need special support for the equipment or if the electricity needs to be rewired around our installation. We can eliminate the need for any costly renovations.

“The way that we look at it, we’re not just providing equipment. We’re helping our clients succeed by saving them time and money. And for this project, we also used our experience to help Jefferson County pass their safety examinations.”

Over the past year, Southpaw has been not just installing MSE rooms across the Jefferson County Public Schools, but also making themselves available for training.

Alex Moore, Southpaw President, believes that this commitment to being involved at every stage of the project is one of the company’s main strengths: “We approach all of our customers as partners. The sooner and more in-depth that we can get involved, the better product and solution we can deliver.”

After nearly an entire year of hard work, the Jefferson County Public Schools MSE rooms are ready for use— just in time for the new school year.

Dr. Renee has enjoyed the partnership that she found with Southpaw. “It’s been a pretty awesome experience. They’re very collaborative. If we ever had questions, they were always open to answering them. And if they don’t know the answer, they’ll work to solve it for us.”

The school has big plans for these sensory rooms. As the rooms are used, Dr. Renee and Ms. Cord are studying what the most effective usage has been and sharing best practices among the other teachers and staff. Plus, Southpaw will continue to offer training and support as needed.

That’s just how Southpaw does business, according to Alex Moore: “Our customers are our customers for life. We’re always looking to the future, and we want them to be just as happy five years from now as they are today.”

Dr. Renee Scheckelhoff

Perfect for overstimulated clients�

Bring 6,000 hours of reliable, maintenance-free gazing at the night sky to anyone who needs it with the Star Gazer. Developed in conjunction with the Hospice of Dayton, this device has been instrumental in alleviating symptoms of anxiety, agitation, dyspnea, pain and insomnia.

Turns any room into a starry night�

THE EQUIPMENT THAT ANSWERS THE CHALLENGES OF JEFFERSON COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS

What went into Jefferson County Public Schools Multi-Sensory Environments?

Jefferson County Public Schools was seeking products that would address a wide variety of behavioral needs, be easy to use, and hold up for years to come. That’s why they chose Southpaw. Here is some of our equipment that appears in sensory rooms across their school district.

Star Gazer

Roll in the rover!

Including two external speakers, an AM/FM radio, CD player and the ability to connect to an iPod, iPad or MP3 player, the Stereo Rover allows you independent control of sound volume and vibration. It’s all housed within a sturdy birch cabinet (in your choice of stain) that can be wheeled anywhere you need it to go.

A great tool for addressing several sensory systems at the same time�

A vital component in every MSE+ room, this comfortable chair has a wireless amplifier that connects via Bluetooth to your favorite music source.

A tactile experience, as well as visual stimulation�

More than 1,000 iridescent marbles are illuminated by diffused lighting within this incredible sensory panel. When turned, the marbles deliver not just visual, tactile and aural sensory input, but also a calming sensation. It even makes you feel good just by looking at it.

Wireless Vibro Rocker

Stereo Rover

Gives control to clients who don’t feel like they can control their environment�

Turn the MSE+ Power Cube and whatever color is facing upward will appear on connected Southpaw equipment. This tool teaches cause and effect, color recognition and communication skills.

Interactive

Kids love the popcorn tube�

When combined with an MSE+ Super Controller and an Interactive Video Player with an MSE+ Super Switch or Power Cube, these tubes create color and motion experiences that enhance sensory environments.

Interactive Star Infinity Panel

Visually stimulating!

Create the illusion of an infinite field of stars that mesmerizes your clients. Requires an MSE+ Super Controller and an Interactive Video Player with an MSE+ Super Switch or Power Cube.

Popcorn Tube

Creates colorful movement and vibratory output�

Your clients enjoy the vibratory input offered by the movement of the bubbles/beads and the visual sensory input provided by the gradual changing color. Our Bubble Tubes with Platform also have padding that surrounds the tube, offering your clients a soft, comfortable seat.

A calming way to build rapport, trust and understanding�

Carly Kearns, MS CCC-SLP

Heather A. Majtyka, MOT OTR/L

The Rainbow Acrobat Swing provides vestibular, proprioceptive and visual input to your clients all at once.

For example, you can suspend the layers from four points to create a motor planning challenge where clients climb through the layers of resistive material, which gives a great proprioceptive feedback experience. You can add an extra challenge by hiding beanbag animals or other favorite toys for the client to “rescue” and throw to a target or help them find their way home. The swing can also hang from two points for calming linear movement or from one point as a safe hiding spot that provides linear, vertical and even rotary vestibular input.

FROM MOTHER TO DESIGN CONSULTANT: A LIFE IN OT

When you design a sensory space with Heather Majtyka, you’re working alongside someone who has experienced nearly every side of the OT experience�

She’s the parent of a child who has received a lifetime of therapy. An occupational therapist who has even built her own clinics. Someone who has provided treatment in a wide variety of settings, including hospitals, schools and private clinics. And she’s also worked as a fieldwork coordinator and has guest lectured for a major university.

From administration down to daily operations and having a full caseload of clients, Heather has diverse experience and a deep understanding of the entire OT field.

Heather also has the unique perspective of not just creating sensory spaces, but also having extensive direct experience as an OT: “I’ve worked with a life-span population from older adults all the way to the NICU. That gives me a baseline understanding of the tools my clients are going to need, which helps me talk to them, understand their needs and visualize for them. I can get right in there and be on the same page with them almost right away.”

For Heather, step one of the design process is safety. She always begins by first ensuring the space can safely accommodate all the equipment that you want to include. She studies the floor plan, compares the specs, dimensions and weights of the products, and then makes sure it’s all going to fit.

She also has a gift for bringing design ideas to life: “One thing I hear from occupational therapists is that they know what they want, but don’t know how to make it work in their space. It can be difficult to visualize something when it’s not in front of you. I can give them an immersive experience and walk them through their potential MSE room in the software. I can show them where things will be, how they will work and what the potential configurations will be. Instead of just looking at blueprints, they can be part of it.”

Yet that isn’t the end of Heather’s involvement with her clients. Working with an installer, she oversees a whiteglove installation, personally unboxing the product while the installer ensures that everything is perfect, all the way down to fitting the hardware and checking to see if the mounting on walls and ceilings is as safe as possible. She can also provide training on how to use, maintain and care for the equipment.

“One of the most exciting parts of what I do is being able to take practicing clinicians’ ideas and turn them into a reality�”

Heather stands behind everything she does: “It’s crucial to me from the beginning to the end of the project that there’s integrity in the process, how it’s installed and how it’s used.”

As for what she sees as Southpaw’s biggest strength, Heather believes that it’s both the products we sell and our partnership with the occupational therapy community. This leads to not just collaboration, but also moments of inspiration: “If someone says, ‘I want something to do this,’ and we can’t find it anywhere, we try to make it for them. We stay very connected with what OTs are practicing out in the field. We want to know what they need and how we can better meet the needs of their population.

“Some of the new products in our catalog that Tom and I designed came directly from ideas from OTs that we met. One of the most exciting parts of what I do is being able to take practicing clinicians’ ideas and turn them into a reality.”

Heather has a long history with Southpaw: “I started buying Southpaw’s products for my son when he was diagnosed with autism before I was an OT. I had Southpaw equipment in my basement to help him, and it lasted forever. That’s because it’s made by hand by an amazing team of people at our factory. There’s no better tool kit for a therapist who practices using the Sensory Integration framework.”

Working with Heather and leveraging her growing design skill set and devotion to her clients is just one more way Southpaw is prepared to help you succeed.

“There’s no better tool kit for a therapist who practices using the Sensory Integration framework�”

DISCOVER HEATHER’S FAVORITE PRODUCTS

We asked Heather Majtyka, Southpaw Occupational Therapist and Design Consultant, to share some of her favorite Southpaw products�

As a parent, as a therapist and as a designer, Heather has been on all sides. Here are some of the Southpaw tools that she’s used and recommends to her clients.

Feels like the playground but has so many areas for enrichment�

The Activity Tower’s interchangeable panels allow you near-unlimited flexibility. That means that whether you need to work on motor planning, coordination, social skills, tactile input, or just need a calm place to work, the Activity Tower can answer the challenge.

Activity Tower

The best selection for kiddos who need to move and yet be calm�

This swing is great for developing body awareness and addressing motor planning skills. It can be used as a hammock, as a calming swing or as a climbing challenge.

Helps clients bounce, push off the ground and work on posture control�

Ideal for proprioceptive stimulation and vertical movement, the Frog Swing can be adapted to accommodate a working load of up to 150 lbs.

Perfect for regulating the tactile system�

These oval-shaped brushes get their name from their designer, Patricia Wilbarger. They have a greater density of bristles for more consistent treatment.

Essential for working on fine motor skills�

From finger, hand and wrist resistive exercises to working on grasp patterns with pediatric clients, TheraputtyTM is always fun to touch and work with. Plus, it’s non-toxic, unscented, nonoily and latex-free and never dries out.

Rainbow Acrobat Swing

Wilbarger Brushes

TheraputtyTM

Frog Swing

A great swing that can be used with any age�

An essential tool in sensory integration therapy, Southpaw’s Platform Swings offer you the ability to create a wide range of tilting movements with the utmost in safety.

Important for postural and bilateral work�

This durable swing is perfect for bilateral coordination, balance, strength and vestibular input. Plus, its size and shape make it simple for clients to mount and dismount.

Always have two of these!

The rubber tube has a natural bounce, which makes it ideal for providing proprioceptive and vestibular stimulation. The tire can be used as a stable swing when a minimum of movement is required.

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A core tool for sensory integration, the Advantage Line Platform Swing allows you to work with child clients in a variety of positions and to address several functional outcomes. It uses linear, rotary and vertical bouncing input, as well as giving riders a stable base to work on motor planning and visual motor/ spatial skills by catching and throwing objects while sitting inside the swing. The Platform Swing also provides a safe first step for children with gravitational insecurity.

TEACHING THE OCCUPATIONAL THERAPISTS OF TOMORROW

Dr� Denise Donica, DHSc, OTR/L, BCP, FAOTA, truly believes in the power of occupational therapy�

In fact, she knows that occupational therapists (OTs) can change the world by going beyond the individual to transform the way that entire populations live their lives.

To do that, she believes that OTs must increase their creativity, go beyond traditional techniques and use technology in new ways, all while forging more personal connections with their patients.

“Our challenge is to change the ideas of how we can impact individuals. We need to understand that we can do so much more. We can reach entire populations of people. This will take us to places beyond our expectations of traditional occupational therapy. This

may mean helping populations overcome barriers that are keeping them from participating in the occupations they choose. Or we could be designing public spaces and advocating policy changes that fundamentally change the way we live our lives,” said Dr. Donica.

She sees OTs as having opportunities beyond the expected, including reintegrating people into society from a variety of backgrounds, including the unhoused population, those displaced by natural disasters, people in foster care and formerly incarcerated persons.

As the Professor and Chair of East Carolina University’s Department of Occupational Therapy, certified in Ayres Sensory Integration, Dr. Donica is teaching and preparing the next generation of occupational therapists for their careers by teaching them the value of flexibility and creativity.

Often, that means getting out from behind the computer.

“Our society is so internet-driven. Instead of finding the answer for ourselves, we often look it up. In OT, we’re working with real people with real needs. Our patients are more than just their condition or challenges. A ready-made treatment plan that you can find with a search engine isn’t enough,” said Dr. Donica.

For occupational therapy to be successful, she believes that OTs must get to know their clients on a much deeper level. That means understanding where they are in their lives, the environment in which they live, and the relationships that are meaningful to them.

She also encourages OTs to use technologies like 3D printing to design and produce items to assist others in their daily occupations. She believes that telehealth will be another powerful tool for change, providing services virtually or through apps to reach individuals who would traditionally have limited access to care. All of these opportunities can lead to community-based and population change.

Dr. Donica is teaching tomorrow’s OTs today in a stateof-the-art sensory lab at East Carolina University, leveraging her CLASI certification in Ayers Sensory Integration. In one lesson, she simulates sensory dysfunction symptoms firsthand for her students, giving them a lesson in empathy for when they treat their future patients.

“At ECU, we envision a future in which our graduates transform clients’ lives through the power of occupations to promote health and well-being�”

Many of the tools in her lab come from Southpaw, and Southpaw is proud to be the primary manufacturer of suspended equipment and swings for the ECU sensory integration labs that Dr. Donica has created.

She adds, “At ECU, we envision a future in which our graduates transform clients’ lives through the power of occupations to promote health and well-being. To do that, we provide numerous hands-on opportunities for them to experience and use the same equipment that they will encounter in real-world therapy sessions. From hospital equipment and sensory equipment to adaptive equipment, they will not only better understand the use of these items and how they work, but also how they can impact the life of others. Instead of just reading about these tools, they will have a better understanding of their impact on individuals and communities in the real world.”

PRODUCTS EVERY OT SHOULD KNOW

What Southpaw products are used by OTs across the country to best reach their patients?

While every client has different challenges, these Southpaw products are at the center of so many sensory solutions. We’ve asked Heather Majtyka, Southpaw Occupational Therapist and Design Consultant, to explain how to get the most out of them.

A great addition to an obstacle course�

Some young clients crave deep pressure, and the Southpaw Steamroller® is the perfect way for them to get it. They’ll love crawling between the rollers and using this tool to work on their motor planning skills, body awareness and shoulder stability.

Ideal for upper extremity strengthening�

You can challenge so many of your clients’ overall development skills with our Trapeze Bars, including upper extremity strengthening, increasing flexion posture and improving motor planning skills.

Useful for coordinating both sides of the body�

An adapted Pony Bolster Swing and Trapeze Bar allows you to address a variety of therapeutic needs in one swing.

Advantage Line 2-in-1 Bolster

Trapeze Bars

Add another dimension of movement�

This VSD provides excellent vestibular and proprioceptive stimulation through vertical movement and controlled bouncing. It can be configured for weights anywhere from 30 to 180 pounds.

A core essential�

The Advantage Line version of the Platform Swing offers you a simplified and economical version of our classic model Platform Swing. Grab this staple of suspended equipment today.

Give proprioceptive feedback�

Arguably the most durably constructed therapy-specific vest of its kind, providing proprioceptive feedback and stability. Complete with side hookand-loop closures for adjustability and safety in the event that they must be quickly removed.

Vertical Stimulation Device

Perfect for weightshifting exercises�

Vestibular input, balance, weightshifting abilities and bilateral coordination can all be worked on and improved with this durable swing.

A starter tool all OTs should have�

This kit includes a safety snap, rotational device, 10' of therapy rope with eye splice and a height adjuster with safety snap. Everything you need to safely hang your Southpaw equipment from ceilings up to 14 feet!

Great for young clients not ready for a swing�

Our PRO Series SCP® balls are colorful and durable, appeal to all ages and are strong enough to be used by children or adults. Use them for flexion, extension, equilibrium reactions and postural adjustments.

Linear Glider

Therapy Balls

THE SOUTHPAW OBIE PRO:

COGNITIVE STIMULATION HAS NEVER BEEN SO FUN

Are you ready for a transformative experience for your clients?

Then get ready for Southpaw’s Obie Pro�

This interactive projection system enhances the well-being of your clients by creating an engaging multisensory experience that stimulates cognitive function, encouraging social interaction and promoting emotional wellness through recreation and shared experience.

The Obie Pro effortlessly transforms the floors and walls of waiting rooms, classrooms, play corners and daycares into therapeutic play areas. With targeted game bundles specially designed to answer the needs of each population, the Obie Pro also offers applications that encourage low-impact physical movement in a thoughtfully accessible format. All of these benefits are delivered within the motivating context of familiar games and activities that can be controlled remotely at the convenient touch of a button.

Users can interact with the projected images in a multisensory experience that combines movement, visual stimulation and cognitive engagement. Many Southpaw Obie applications are designed for group interaction, fostering socialization opportunities with familiar games, sights and sounds that offer a shared experience and an opportunity for connection and engagement.

The Obie Pro arrives preprogrammed with over 125 therapeutic and multiplayer game activities.

The possibilities—and customization options— are endless�

The Obie can be mounted in three unique combinations: with the included mount or the optional drop ceiling mount (above) or by using the Obie cart (right).

CREATE A LIFEALTERING SPACE FOR YOUR STUDENTS.

SOUTHPAW DESIGN SERVICES

Do you want to create a sensory integration room or an interactive multi-sensory environment that transforms a room into a lifealtering experience?

SOUTHPAW OFFERS COMPREHENSIVE ROOM

DESIGN SERVICES THAT INCLUDE:

THREE-DIMENSIONAL LAYOUT OF THE ROOM

ITEMIZED QUOTE

PROFESSIONAL INSTALLATION SERVICES

ON-SITE TRAINING SERVICES

Depending on the size and scope of the project, there may be a nominal fee, which will be credited toward a purchase. Proposals will be completed within 7-10 business days.

TO LEARN MORE ABOUT

SOUTHPAW’S DESIGN SERVICES

CALL: 844.632.2191

VISIT: SOUTHPAW.COM/DESIGN-SERVICES

EMAIL: DESIGN@SOUTHPAW.COM

THE SOUTHPAW PROMISE

We promise superior quality and craftsmanship.

We promise to build products that are uniquely guaranteed to last.

We promise to focus solely in the area of sensory therapy.

We promise unparalleled customer service.

We promise to offer creative solutions based on clinical need.

P.O. BOX 1047

DAYTON, OHIO

45401-1047

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DOMESTIC TOLL-FREE PHONE: 800.228.1698

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INTERNATIONAL PHONE: +1.937.252.6460

FAX: 937.252.8502 or 937.258.4390

EMAIL: customerservice@southpaw.com

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