A very warm welcome to the beginning of summer. As we observe Memorial Day and pay tribute to the many service members who sacrificed their lives for our country, we should also be aware of the many veterans returning home who will need your occupational therapy services.

As you may have read in several of our recent issues, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is actively recruiting occupational therapists. As an OT for the VA, you can help heroes re-enter the everyday world. In April, as many vets were returning from the Middle East, we sent an email to you highlighting the many OT opportunities with the VA.

The VA offers many unique opportunities for OTs to make a big impact. From ongoing research initiatives to numerous leadership paths, the possibilities of what you can do and achieve are endless. If you are considering a career change, or are a new graduate beginning your job search, please consider our veterans in your search. They will greatly appreciate your hard work and help in regaining daily living skills for home, work and rejoining their communities.

If you attended the American Occupational Therapy Association Annual Conference & Expo in Indianapolis last month, I hope you had fun and learned a lot. If you couldn’t make it, our editor, Natasha Emmons; continuing education editor Debora A. Davidson, OTR/L, PhD; and national director of advertising, Mike Burns, RN, were there gathering the latest research and trends in practice for you, our readers. Natasha wrote two feature articles in this issue based on educational highlights at the event. And we will have more for you from poster presenters and other leaders in the field in the coming issues of the quarterly magazine and monthly ezine.

I hope you dropped by our trade show booth and were able to speak with Natasha, Debora and Mike. If not, and while the conference is still fresh in your memory, please email us your thoughts: editor@TodayinOT.com.

It is great to hear there is so much happening in occupational therapy research and evidenced-based practice. It is also excellent news that Carolyn Baum, OTR/L, PhD, FAOTA, will be representing our interests on the National Quality Forum steering committee on neurological conditions. Finally, on a personal note, I am very excited about the upcoming unveiling of AOTA’s national outcomes database. This is a great new path for OTs! •