Nick Viti, Director of Life Enrichment at The Cedars, recently received the Practitioner of the Year Award from the Maine Association of Occupational Therapists. The Cedars is thrilled that Nick received this peer elected recognition!

Nick began working with students and adults with behavioral disabilities after graduating from college, so Nick went back to school to earn his occupational therapy degree from the University of Southern Maine. After graduation, he worked with dementia patients in a  nursing home, and  loved his work but wanted something more—to truly get to know residents, develop personalized therapeutic goals for them, and create meaningful, enjoyable daily activities that reinforced those goals. The holistic approach to wellness at The Cedars was just what he was looking for, and he brought his passion for innovative, person-centered care and his in-depth knowledge of dementia treatment to The Cedars in 2013.

During his time at The Cedars, Nick has been an integral part of implementing some significant programs that help our residents with dementia thrive in their days.  Some of these programs include Music and Memory and Opening Minds through Art that put The Cedars on the cutting edge of long term care – which contributes to our extraordinarily low rate of antipsychotropic medication use. Congratulations and thank you, Nick!