Physiotherapy
Physiotherapy Services:
Gross Motor Skills and Coordination
We help kids walk, run, jump and climb! Challenges with gross motor skills impact a child’s confidence, social interactions and school participation. If your child avoids new skills, is easily frustrated, has difficulty keeping up with peers or is hesitant on the playground, they would benefit from a physiotherapy assessment.
We also provide formalized assessment of gross motor skills, movement and coordination to help parents seeking a medical diagnosis or to access funding.
Sports and Community Engagement
We can help with sport specific skills both in the clinic and in the community. We provide therapy and training for kids involved in a variety of sports including swimming, biking, and running as well as team sports. We also know how important inclusive sport opportunities are for kids and their families and work to find community options that support each child’s individual needs.
Infants and Toddlers
A baby’s motor skills are critical to their development. We can provide an assessment of your baby’s motor milestones (sitting, crawling, walking etc.) and develop their skills through play.
We also assess and treat stiffness in a baby’s neck muscles causing them to tilt their head and look in one direction (torticollis), and flattening on a baby’s head (plagiocephaly).
Injuries
Kids are not small adults, having different injuries and risk factors for injury. We can help your child get back to play and sports following an injury, surgery or major health event.
Our Physiotherapists:
Dawn MacKay
Dawn is a pediatric physiotherapist. Growing up Dawn had a strong passion for all sports. She competed at the varsity level in softball at both the University of Guelph and University of Western Ontario. During her time at Western she had the opportunity to travel abroad for a placement in Cape Town, South Africa and there began her love for pediatrics. She graduated from the University of Western Ontario with a masters degree in physiotherapy in 2011.
Following graduation Dawn pursued her love of sport and completed her certificate of sports physiotherapy. She spent the following years working with high level athletes with a specific interest in Ice hockey, ringette, basketball, volleyball and Rugby. Some highlights included The Ringette World Championships and Hockey Canada Women’s U18/U22 training camp.
In 2014 Dawn and her partner made the move from Ontario to Alberta. At this time Dawn began to focus her practice towards the pediatric population both in sports/ orthopaedic injury, as well as developmental delay. Dawn has specialized her practice to meet the needs of this population. Specifically focusing on; Myofascial and Soft tissue release, functional dry needling, manual therapy, Mulligan training, taping, sensory processing and motor planning, the dynamic core. Dawn is a play based therapist and believes that physiotherapy session should be fun for everyone involved!
On her time off Dawn and her family can be found outside- hiking, camping in their vintage boler, skiing, skating or checking out every playground and park they can find.
Keri Venz
Keri is a pediatric physiotherapist who received her Masters of Physical therapy degree from the University of Queensland. She has practiced as a pediatric physiotherapist in Australia, supporting infants, children and teens to fulfill their movement goals and enhance participation in play, school, and sports. She moved to Alberta in 2023 following her love of the mountains and outdoor lifestyle.
Keri is passionate about creating positive movement experiences for all children, and believes movement is linked to confidence, regulation, language, independence, and health. She takes a fun, play-based approach, ensuring each child has an individual assessment and plan suited to their unique needs and strengths.
She takes a holistic approach and loves working in collaboration with the family and other therapists to support the full needs of the child. Keri has a special interest in working with Neurological conditions that impact movement. She also has experience working with many genetic, orthopaedic, and musculoskeletal conditions.
During her time off, Keri enjoys taking her dog to the mountains, the beach, or soaking up the sun on a patio.