From Confusion to Clarity: Benefits of Using Optimal Terminology

<p xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" class="first" dir="auto" id="d3586918e135"> <b>Abstract</b> <p xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" dir="auto" id="d3586918e140">When we are with horses, we strive to be self-aware, consistent, congruent, accurate, respectful and kind. If we maintain these qualities around horses, why is it such a challenge to also embody those qualities when talking about them and the wonderful work that we can accomplish with them? It seems that we still struggle, as is evidenced within published research, digital media, or marketing materials with inconsistencies and inaccuracies in our language. It's not surprising that the public remains confused. Unfortunately, our outdated terminology makes us appear to lack self-awareness and third-party payers are happy to take advantage of our discrepancies. In this workshop, facilitated by the authors of the paper “Optimal Terminology for Services that Incorporate Horses to Benefit People” (Wood et al, 2021) we will explore and work on more accessible and inviting ways to talk about what we do while using terminology that is accurate and consistent. We might discover it can be almost as fun and engaging as being with our horses! <p xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" dir="auto" id="d3586918e142"> <b>Presenters</b> <p xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" dir="auto" id="d3586918e147"> <b>Kathy Alm, CEO, PATH, Intl.</b> <p xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" dir="auto" id="d3586918e152"> <b>Michelle Kane, ESMHL, USMC (ret), Veteran</b> <p xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" dir="auto" id="d3586918e157"> <b>Lynn Thomas, LCSW, Arenas for Change</b>