Contributors to “Your Health Marketplace”
Kathleen M. Banchoff, Ph.D., is a writer currently living in Providence, where she is a family support volunteer for Home & Hospice Care - Rhode Island. She is retired from teaching at Christian Brothers University, Memphis TN and from managing market research for major corporations. She continues to work with academic and community organizations on communication skills development projects. She has produced two books in McMaster’s Writing Down Our Years Series on family caregiving and communication and leads workshops on these topics. The newest workshop is on
Finding the Smile: Asking for Help Through Story. Kathleen Banchoff and Ellen Ryan together developed, the content of the learning modules
“Self Advocacy”, “Writing Your Life Story”, Spirituality and Health” and
“Caregiving from Family Caregivers”.
The content of the learning module “The Built Environment” was developed by Mary Jane Carroll. Trained in Interior Design at Sheridan College, Mary Jane was also the coordinator of the program from 1993 - 2000 and Associate Dean from 2000 - 2003. She has worked as a consultant, where her clients have included Cooper Corporation and Petro Canada, among others. Most recently, she developed the specialized post-diploma program for designers, Design for an Aging Population (DAP). Mary Jane also sits on the Interior Design Continuing Education Committee of ARIDO.
Lourdes (Lou) A. D. de la Cruz is a Professor, Sheridan Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning. She is a Registered Nurse, a Certified Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse, and holds a Masters in Health Sciences and an MSc in Community Health Nursing. Aside from her teaching, she has worked as a mental health nurse in Los Angeles, CA and as a psychogeriatric nurse consultant.Currently, she teaches in the Social Service Worker-Gerontology and Community Worker programs, co-coordinates the Practical Nursing program, involved in developing online distance education courses for Sheridan, and conducts workshops in Pharmacology and health related issues for community agencies. Lou de la Cruz developed the content for the learning modules
“Age Related Physical Health”, “Caregiving”, “Mental Health”, “Cognitive Impairment” and “Social Connections”.
Joseph Rotella, Professor, Osteopath, Athletic Therapist, a Hamilton native, graduated from Brock University with a Bachelors of Physical Education in 1989. He continued his studies at Sheridan College, and graduated in 1991 with a Diploma in Sports injury Management, receiving the Robert Firth Memorial Scholarship for academic excellence. He obtained a Master of Science in 1993 from Indiana State University majoring in sports medicine, graduating Phi Kappa Phi, Honours Society, and certifying as an Athletic Therapist the same year. In 1999, he received his Doctorate in Osteopathic Manual Practice from the Canadian College of Osteopathy. As a Professor for 15 years, he has taught at Sheridan Institute, McMaster University and the Canadian College of Osteopathy. He was the coordinator of the Sports Injury Management Program and later the Bachelors of Applied Health Science (Athletic Therapy) at Sheridan Institute. He has held association positions in various committees such as Education Committee and Program Accreditation Committee for the Canadian Athletic Therapists Association. In 2004, the Canadian Athletic Therapist Association awarded Joseph Rotella “Distinguished Educator Award” for his career in education thus far. He is the owner of the Hamilton Osteopathic and Rehabilitation Centre dedicated to the quality care of individuals with a myriad of health issues.
A father of two, and a former varsity athlete, Joseph Rotella continues to remain active in sport and exercise. His passion for athletics has taken him to Europe, USA, the Middle East and all across Canada teaching with the Canadian Medical. He recently rescinded an invitation to the Paralympics to remain home for the birth of his son Cole in 2008. Joe developed the content for the learning module
"Active Aging: Movement Matters".
Ellen Ryan is Professor Emerita, Gerontology, McMaster University and former chair of the Psychology Department at the University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana. Her internationally recognized research has focused on the psychology of aging and communication predicaments of older adults with disabilities. For the McMaster Centre for Gerontological Studies, she serves as Series Editor for
Writing Down Our Years, a set of inexpensive books designed to highlight the many benefits of writing life stories for older adults and those with whom they share their stories and poems. Her recent talks and workshops include
Seeking Meaning in Retirement, Successful Aging with a Disability, Why Write Your Life Story, Asking for Help Through Story, The Spirit of Elder Care: Practicing Connection, Gratitude, and Hope. Ellen Ryan, together with Kathleen Banchoff, developed the content for the learning modules
" Self Advocacy", "Writing Your Life Story", "Spirituality and Health" and
"Caregiving from Family Caregivers".
Ann Anas received her Honours B.A. at the University of Western Ontario in 1969. She is presently ‘retired’ after working for over 30 years as a Research Assistant and Research Coordinator in the Department of Psychology at the University of Western Ontario and the Departments of Psychology and Gerontology at McMaster University. For 12 of those years she worked closely with Ellen Ryan on a number of federally supported research projects. She now spends three days a week at the Sheridan Elder Research Centre (SERC), collecting and analyzing data and coordinating the content of the
Your Health Marketplace website.