Karen Smith is a licensed occupational therapist, a Certified Driving Rehabilitation Specialist (CDRS), and a licensed driving instructor.

Education and Health Care Experience

Karen received her bachelor's degree in Occupational Therapy from San Jose State University in 1992. She has considerable experience in neurologic and orthopedic rehabilitation, helping people recover their independence after a variety of diagnoses including strokes, Parkinson's Disease, joint replacements, fractures, multiple sclerosis and dementia/Alzheimer's. She also works with children with neurological and orthopedic disorders including spina bifida, osteogenisis imperfecta, muscular dystrophy, Asberger's and autism.

Certified Driving Rehabilitation Specialist (CDRS)

Karen has been providing comprehensive driving evaluations since 1994 for clients in the San Francisco Bay Area, including Sonoma and Napa counties. She has lectured on the driving evaluation process and on helping senior drivers stay on the road at a variety of community venues, including Dominican University, North Bay Chapter of Neuropsychologists and elder support groups. Obtaining and maintaining a CDRS credential requires a strong background in the health care field and regular attendance at the Association for Driving Rehabilitation Specialists conference. This conference provides up-to-date information on the latest adaptive driving strategies and adaptive driving equipment. Karen also participates in the annual CarFit event in Marin County. CarFit is an educational program that offers older adults the opportunity to determine how well their personal vehicles "fit" them.

Driving Lessons

In addition to performing the driving evaluation, Karen is able to provide driving lessons that address the improvement of general driving skills as well as learning to use adaptive driving equipment.