Pelvic Health Network

Enhanced Recovery After Delivery Training Q/A
2025-06-24 19:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York)
This special Q/A will be open to the public and to Pelvic Health Network members who have specific questions on starting a new service line, business, or hospital-based program that provides acute care, virtual, and home-health services during:

pregnancy (including high-risk conditions) and
within 0-6 days following any birth experience and pelvic surgery (e.g. hysterectomy, high-degree perineal tear, sterilization, hemorrhage management, and more).

We will discuss the upcoming Enhanced Recovery After Delivery training that prepares licensed health providers and birth professionals to expedite maternal health support faster than the current standard of care. This training will be offered via livestream and in-person, providing breakfast, lunch, and a beautiful hike with iconic views of the Pikes Peak region.
The training will be professionally recorded for future, self-paced participants while our livestream and in-person participants will master the hands-on techniques that can be started in the hospital and home. Every trainee will have access to a 1:1 meeting with an ERAD instructor that they can request within the 12 months from the start of their training: live or self-paced.
This Q/A will answer your questions on whether or not you should continue observing perinatal health practice across all settings OR if you are ready to advance your career and join us at our beautiful headquarters in Colorado Springs on July 19-20, 2025. After this training, you can choose to pursue the Perinatal Health Specialist Certification that is 100% unique to this specialized area of practice.
We can’t wait to meet you, learn about your mission, and help you succeed! This Q/A will be recorded for members of Pelvic Health Network where memberships directly support program and professional development to advance early interventions in acute care, home health, virtual practice, and community-based support for maternal health, women’s health, and pelvic health care.
REGISTER HERE

OT and PT Capstones in Maternal and Pelvic Health: Acute Care to Home Health
2025-05-14 20:00 - 20:45 (America/New_York)
As interest in maternal and pelvic health continues to rise in both acute care and home health settings, an increasing number of programs and businesses are introducing OT and PT services earlier than traditional standards of care. Join us for a dynamic roundtable discussion featuring occupational and physical therapy students, capstone advisors, and practicing clinicians. Together, they’ll explore how maternal and pelvic health are being redefined across hospital, home, and virtual care environments.
REGISTER HERE

Physical therapy after c-section
2025-05-12 20:00 - 20:30 (America/New_York)
🏥 Postpartum pain has been closely linked with maternal mental health and studies have examined the impact of maternal pain on newborn bonding.
🩺 Dr. Addy Javes, PT, DPT shares her recent case report on the impact that physical therapy has in the hospital after birth on postpartum pain and function to improve maternal outcomes after cesarean section.
🗓️ Join us for an exclusive interview with her on why she wrote about this area of recovery care that’s rarely offered to new moms: Monday, May 12, 2025 at 8 PM ET.
Watch the livestream HERE

Vital Signs on the Maternity Unit
2025-04-02 19:30 - 20:30 (America/New_York)
April 2, 2025 In hospitals across the country, rehab therapists routinely monitor vital signs with patients during the activity they are expected to perform at home. Dr. Jennifer Bonia, PT, DPT is an acute care therapist treating patients in the hospital after c-section who inspired this month’s inaugural Women’s Health Research Club on the use of the Adult Vital Sign Interpretation in Acute Care Guide to expand evidence-based rehab practice on the maternity unit. Join us HERE for a discussion on using this guide for immediate postpartum recovery care on Wednesday, April 2nd at 7:30 PM ET.

Breastfeeding strategies for birth professionals Q/A
2025-02-26 14:00 - 14:30 (America/New_York)
Join our discussion with Dr. Ann Croghan about early intervention strategies that will help breastfeeding function and goals in the first 0 – 6 weeks of postpartum recovery.
WATCH HERE

When should OT and PT be offered in the hospital after birth?
2025-02-05 19:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York)
In this talk, we explore the factors that support the evidence-based decisions to offer rehab in the hospital after birth. We discuss optimal timing for postpartum occupational and physical therapy and showcase their benefits in supporting 4th trimester recovery and perinatal health. Whether you’re a healthcare professional or maternal health advocate, you will gain valuable tools and knowledge to enhance family-centered care and grow sustainable acute care OB rehab programs.
Watch HERE

Raising Your Value as a Pelvic Health Provider
2024-12-11 20:00 - 21:00 (America/New_York)
Were you ever frustrated with how many people struggled with pelvic floor symptoms before they received help?
Have you ever heard someone say, “Why didn’t anyone tell me about pelvic floor therapy sooner?” OR “I had to wait several months to get an appointment with you?!”
How did it make you feel?
After years of practice, Dr. Janelle Howell, PT, DPT, WCS, a pelvic health therapist, discovered how to help more people than she ever could in her 1:1 visits with one of the most intimate conditions that people deal with for years before receiving proper care.
As a women’s health clinical specialist in physical therapy and expert on vaginismus, she grew her social media following to an audience of more than 300K across Instagram and Tik Tok in less than 2 years. Her channel, @vaginarehabdoctor is one of the most sought-after resources on relieving pain with intimacy.
In her annual workshop, Raising Your Value as a Pelvic Health Provider, she teaches professionals how to use their most valuable asset to reach the people who benefit the most from their services sooner rather than later.
REGISTER HERE to join her workshop live or to access the recording!
See you soon!

What the [women's] health? How to include women in rehab protocols
2024-11-19 19:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York)
World Health Organization: Women account for 67% of the global health and social care workforce. Deloitte: Women pay $15.4 billion more than men for annual out-of-pocket expenses. U.S. Department of Labor and Statistics: Women make up 75% of total employment in hospitals. The New England Journal of Medicine: Female primary care physicians spend 15.7% more time with their patients yet earn 8 to 29% less than male counterparts. BMC Primary Care: Women are more likely to visit their primary care physician for physical and mental health concerns than men.
Is rehab education staying current with academic medicine and including the largest healthcare consumers in the world: Women? If so, where are the rehab and early recovery protocols after the most commonly performed major surgeries in the world including cesarean section, hysterectomy, and mastectomy? In this 1-hour workshop with Rebeca Segraves, you will learn how to develop early recovery care plans called rehab protocols, that prioritize the mental and physical function of patients who currently lack early access to occupational and physical therapy to enhance their recovery after major procedures.
Open to women’s health advocates, occupational therapy practitioners, physical therapy practitioners, nurse practitioners, physicians, midwives, doulas, fitness/wellness professionals, and more!
ACCESS HERE

Why Pelvic Health is about Skin Color
2024-11-06 18:00 - 19:00 (America/New_York)
Pelvic health is not about OT vs PT qualifications, insurance reimbursement, or physician preference. It’s about Race.
As the largest recipients of c-section and hysterectomy worldwide, Black women are becoming more aware that their surgical recovery is considered Low Priority by surgeons and rehab professionals alike.
On Wednesday, November 6th, join acute care therapists who publicly discuss how they challenged the status quo in order to expand access to rehab after birth across 12 hospitals in their health system to include the largest recipients of cesarean section surgery: Black women.
Special guests: Jasmine Dockett, OTR/L and Rachel Lewis, OTR/L, Acute Care Occupational Therapists from Sentara Health, Virginia.
VIEW HERE

Building professional relationships in maternal health
2024-09-18 20:00 - 20:30 (America/New_York)
Jena Roeber, OTR/L, PHS
This course covers how to collaborate with maternal health professionals in your hospital and community to expand access to rehab services for families who benefit the most during high-risk pregnancy and immediately after birth prior to returning home.
Wednesday, September 18, 2024 at 8:00 PM ET
REGISTER HERE!

The strongest evidence for hospital rehab after birth
2024-09-10 19:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York)
Dr. Katherine Sylvester, Founder of Operation M.I.S.T.
Background: In 2022, we found an acute care physical therapist who started a remote vital sign monitoring company that monitors:

perinatal blood pressure
heart rate
SPO2
temperature
heart rate variability
glucose
sleep quality

Dr. Katherine Sylvester, PT, DPT is the Founder of Operation M.I.S.T. and is presenting her annual lecture on the strongest evidence that OTs and PTs can use to determine when to offer a rehab evaluation in the hospital and home after birth.
Therapists will learn how to consults directly with families on:

healthcare providers and community partners to add to their team based on their data and social determinants of health
work/maternity leave requests
lifestyle modifications to keep their vital signs in optimal range during pregnancy and throughout the first 12 months postpartum

Join us on Tuesday, September 10th at 7 PM ET!
REGISTER HERE

Pelvic Health Therapy 2024
2024-07-17 18:30 - 20:00 (America/New_York)
“We need more pelvic health providers”

Limited access to services remains a huge barrier for individuals who experience pelvic health dysfunction.
This live panel discussion invites leaders across mental health, nutrition, fitness, rehab, and medicine to a dynamic discussion on how to collaborate and expand the network of services accessible to the public.
Wednesday, July 17th: 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM ET
CLICK HERE to Join LIVE or View Later

100% of OBGYNs recommend pelvic floor PT after birth. Here is the reality.
2024-05-16 13:30 - 14:00 (America/New_York)
The 2024 Origin Pelvic Health Study revealed that women who have given birth within the past 5 years report that they received no guidance on 1) healing their pelvic floor after childbirth (86%), 2) reducing their risk of tearing during childbirth (85%), 3) healing their abdominals after pregnancy and birth (83%), or 4) exercising safely before or after delivery (71%).
Carine Carmy, Co-Founder and CEO at Origin discusses the factors contributing to these gaps in pregnancy and postpartum health education and the innovative solutions that are quickly making pelvic health therapy more accessible than ever
Origin is one of the fastest growing pelvic health therapy companies in the U.S. offering virtual rehab in all 50 states. Join live or view the recording, May 16, 2024 at 1:30 PM ET: https://www.linkedin.com/events/100-ofobgynsrecommendpelvicfloo7194205569442844672/theater/

What I teach physical therapy students about birth
2024-04-26 13:00 - 14:00 (America/New_York)
Dr. Katherine Sylvester, PT, DPT is the founder of Operation M.I.S.T., an organization that provides remote health monitoring for women during pregnancy and immediately after birth. She shares what she wants physical therapy students to know about maternal health everywhere she lectures.
VIEW HERE

Cash Pay Pelvic Health Therapy
2024-04-25 18:00 - 19:00 (America/New_York)
Danika Viola, MS, OTR/L is a pelvic health OT who is innovating ways to make pelvic health services more accessible to her clients. She has grown a flourishing community of pelvic health practitioners who are providing early interventions that transform the client experience, resulting in faster outcomes and happier patients.
Join LIVE: Thursday, April 25th at 8 PM ET

Optimizing Fertility: How Pelvic Health Therapists Can Help
2024-04-24 19:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York)
According to the CDC, 1 in 5 married women in the U.S. between 15 and 49 years are unable to get pregnant after 1 year of trying and 1 in 4 individuals in this group have difficulty carrying their pregnancy to term.
Dr. Yeni Abraham is the founder of Triggered PT, a practice that helps women navigate high-risk pregnancy, pelvic pain, endometriosis, uterine fibroids, bladder leakage, and infertility. Her mission is to advance pelvic health practice to meet the needs of people trying to conceive.
In this interview, we’ll discuss what rehab therapists should know to support patients on their fertility journey including common impairments, mental health considerations, and strategies for optimizing health before and after pregnancy.
Join via Zoom: 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM Eastern Time

The future of cesarean rehab
2024-04-23 20:00 - 21:00 (America/New_York)
Dr. Lashonda Jones, PT, DPT is a virtual physical therapist and social media influencer that teaches moms how to recover earlier after c-section. She shares how her own c-section recovery shaped her physical therapy practice and the information she now equips mothers with, as early as 24 hours after birth. We’ll discuss what she believes will be the future of cesarean rehab and how professionals can take advantage of opportunities to reach women sooner who want to thrive after their major abdominal surgery.
VIEW LIVE

How networks grew my women's health business
2024-04-18 20:00 - 21:00 (America/New_York)
Elle Russell, MSOT, OTR/L is the owner of Occupational Transitions who is passionate about running, pelvic health, and postpartum recovery. She discusses how she grew her women’s health business and how occupational therapists are transforming maternal health.
VIEW HERE

Virtual Rehab After Birth
2024-04-18 13:30 - 14:30 (America/New_York)
Dr. Abby Bales is the founder of Reform Physical Therapy that provides personalized services during pregnancy and after birth. She discusses the current state of postpartum care and the lifesaving potential of virtual health services.
VIEW HERE

Marketing your pelvic health business
2024-04-17 20:00 - 21:00 (America/New_York)
Dr. Janelle Howell, PT, DPT, WCS, @vaginarehabdoctor, is a preacher and seggs-positive Christian who specializes in women’s health. She helps women return to pain-free intimacy and rekindle lasting, fulfilling relationships. On Wednesday, April 17th, she will share how pelvic health professionals can reach their core audience faster using the time-tested methods she used to grow 340K+ followers across IG and Tik Tok in 2 years. Join us live or catch the replay!
Wednesday, April 17th at 8 PM ET: VIEW THE LIVESTREAM

Rock climbing and pelvic health
2024-04-17 12:00 - 12:30 (America/New_York)
Dr. Aakriti Agrawal is a physical therapist and the founder of No Pelvis Left Behind. She provides virtual and in-person healthcare to women who want to improve their pelvic health, relationships, and fitness. She’s an outdoor enthusiast who believes anyone can use what brings them joy to improve their lives.
VIEW HERE

Pitch Perfect: Getting Hospital Buy-in for Postpartum Rehab
2024-04-16 18:00 - 19:00 (America/New_York)
Dr. Michelle Figueira, PT, DPT is a director of rehab with years of experience developing the talents of her acute care therapy team. She discusses what she did to start an OB rehab program in her hospital that enhanced the recovery and experience that women had before returning home after childbirth.
Join LIVE or view later: Tuesday, April 16th at 6 PM ET

Sex counseling: what to know for your pelvic health practice
2024-04-11 20:00 - 21:00 (America/Denver)
Join us for a deep dive with Dr. Uchenna “UC” Ossai, the founder of YouSeeLogic which is a sexual health platform based in social justice.
We’ll discuss what professionals need to know about advancing their practice in sexual health, respecting the boundaries of mental health, and protecting sexual wellbeing as a human right.
Join LIVE: 8:00 – 9:00 PM Eastern Time

Risk Management Strategies that Protect Our Moms
2024-04-09 11:30 - 12:00 (America/New_York)
Princess Castleberry is a TEDxDetroit featured Global Speaker who helps organizations protect their people, purpose, and profits. We will discuss the maternal health landscape and her own birth experience that contributed to her focus on wellness and risk.
Join LIVE or view later: Tuesday, April 9th at 11:30 AM ET

Maternal Health OT with Dr. Sabina Khan, PhD, OTD, OTR/L
2024-04-01 12:00 - 13:00 (America/Halifax)
For the past few months, I have been doing a deep dive with doulas and therapists who are finding ways around hospital red tape and “lack of research” that justifies a decision to not offer rehab within the first few days of physical trauma after birth, including a major open abdominal surgery.
These professionals span acute care, private practice, and virtual health and they are inspiring me towards possibilities I didn’t consider before.
Today, I’m speaking with Dr. Sabina Khan, PhD, OTD, OTR/L about her research, her why, the house visits she does for her patients, including teen moms – all of it.
WATCH THE REPLAY

Starting a maternal rehab program in the hospital
2024-03-27 20:00 - 21:00 (America/New_York)
Our most frequently asked question: “Is it possible to provide maternal rehab services in a hospital that I don’t work for?” The short answer is: yes – it’s absolutely possible. The long answer: We’ll take a deep dive into what you need to know today to start offering occupational and physical therapy to individuals in a hospital that you work for and in one that you don’t.
Join via Zoom: 7:00 – 8:00 PM Eastern Time

A Talk With Dr. Chris Henneberg, MD, OB/GYN
2024-01-16 18:00 UTC
Join this special interview on Tuesday, January 16th at 6:00 PM ET with Dr. Chris Henneberg, OB/GYN and author to discuss what we should all know to improve the experience after birth.
Literary works by Dr. Henneberg: https://christinehenneberg.com/about-me/

Preeclampsia And IV Magnesium Sulfate
2023-12-13 16:00 - 17:00 UTC
We’ll discuss preeclampsia, IV magnesium sulfate, and what every person who gives birth in a hospital should know before they return home.
If you or someone you know feels that you should have been provided with rehab services in the hospital after birth or after a major pelvic surgery, please share your experience with the Pelvic Health Network at: info@pelvichealthnetwork.org to help us intervene earlier for people with the information they need to enhance their recovery.

The Difference Between Occupational Therapy And Physical Therapy: Pelvic Health Edition
2023-12-07 15:00 - 17:00 UTC
After listening to the experience of a woman who gave birth in a U.S. hospital, occupational and physical therapists learn why their discipline, certifications, specialties, and ultimately business doesn’t matter when they are absent during recovery.

Grow An OB Rehab Program In The Hospital And Home After Birth
2023-12-01 18:00 - 19:00 UTC
Do you believe that individuals after birth should be informed on how to enhance their function immediately after delivery without having to wait and figure out things on their own?
Are hospitals in your community offering rehab services DAILY after elective surgery yet not offering therapy ONCE to patients after cesarean section?
Are you a leader in your field, advocating to improve maternal function now to avoid unwanted symptoms later?
You can establish a new standard for care globally by optimizing function after birth and pelvic surgery directly in hospitals, birth centers, and at home where recovery begins.
