Ellen Au

Occupational Therapist

Ellen is dedicated to her clients and has invested in the education necessary to provide the appropriate interventions to help clients and their families reach their goals. She completed her Masters in Occupational Therapy in 2019 at the University of Sydney, Australia. She also holds a Bachelor of Arts in Health Sciences with a minor in early learning from Simon Fraser University, and a Rehabilitation Assistant Diploma. Ellen has a passion for continued learning about the Occupational Therapy field and is always reading about new evidence based client-centred therapies that she can implement to help her clients succeed.

Ellen has almost a decade of experience working with children and teens in various settings and with multidisciplinary teams. Over the years she has helped children with many different diagnoses and varying levels of learning disabilities. A few of her previous jobs include leading play therapy sessions at a respite hospital in Australia, running groups for early intervention school readiness at a private clinic, and doing 1:1 sessions. Ellen is constantly pulling from her experience to adapt or modify for new, innovative interventions. Her favourite part of the job is celebrating the small but big wins as a client works towards their goal.

When she’s not working, you will find Ellen playing Ultimate Frisbee or out with her run club. She is an active individual and enjoys spending time outdoors and experiencing nature. She also loves to hang out with friends, enjoys pastries and coffee, and traveling to new places to  experience different cultures and food.

Ellen is a member of the Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists (CAOT), and the College of Occupational Therapists of British Columbia (COTBC). She is also registered with the Registry of Autism Service Providers (RASP)

Ellen is currently on maternity leave and unavailable until 2025. Congratulations on the healthy baby!!

Angie Garces

Occupational Therapist

Angie is an occupational therapist who completed her Master of Occupational Therapy (MOT) at the University of British Columbia. During the MOT program, she did her research on the mental health of parents of children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD), and their concerns on how DCD impacts their child's mental health. She had the opportunity to present these findings at the Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists and DCD-14 conferences. Angie also holds her bachelor’s degree in Child and Youth Care and her diploma in Early Childhood Education.

Before completing her Master of Occupational Therapy, Angie worked one-on-one and in group settings with children who had varied needs as an Early Childhood Educator. It is here that she learned the importance of family-centered care and adapting the environment to meet a child's occupational needs. Through this experience, she became passionate about working as an occupational therapist who could support and guide families in accomplishing their meaningful goals. In her practice, Angie strives to create a safe and collaborative environment where children and families feel welcomed in the therapeutic process.

Angie completed the Cognitive Orientation to Daily Occupational Performance (CO-OP) training on how to use the CO-OP approach with children who have motor challenges. She is a member of the Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists (CAOT) and the College of Occupational Therapists of British Columbia (COTBC). She is on the Registry of Autism Service Providers (RASP) list under supervision.

Angie is currently accepting new clients. She works in the clinic on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays.

Alex Walcott

Occupational Therapist

Alex originally hails from Michigan and moved to Vancouver in 2021. She completed her MS in Occupational Therapy at Western Michigan University in 2014 and has worked all over the United States in school, outpatient, early intervention and acute pediatric settings. Upon immigrating to Canada, Alex successfully completed the SEAS program to transfer her occupational therapy credentials. Alex is a longtime advocate of neuro-diverse children and youth and has obtained additional training in providing child-led, relational therapy (known as DIR-Floortime) through the International Council on Development and Learning and has received additional training in providing trauma-informed care to vulnerable populations. She also loves leading groups and has previously facilitated feeding, adaptive sport, social sibling, music and improv, and much more!

Alex is fully licensed through COTBC and is on the Registry of Autism Service Providers (RASP) list.

Alex is accepting new client referrals and currently works in the clinic on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Eunice Tan

Speech Language Pathologist

Eunice is a Registered Speech-Language Pathologist (RSLP) licensed with the College of Speech and Hearing Health Professionals of BC (CSHBC). She is also a Clinical Educator who provides clinical supervision to SLP students from UBC.

Through more than 15 years of working in public health and private practice, Eunice has developed extensive clinical skills specific to preschool and school-age children. She is especially interested in speech sound disorders and apraxia of speech, fluency (stuttering), social communication/Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), and augmentative and alternative communication (AAC).

In addition to her Master of Speech-Language Pathology degree from the University of Alberta, Eunice has also completed training in:

• PROMPT (Prompts for Restructuring Oral Muscular Phonetic Targets) Introduction Level - Intervention for children with moderate to severe speech sound disorders

• More Than Words® - The Hanen Program® for parents of children with ASD or social communication difficulties

• Social Thinking - Strategies for building social competencies

• Licombe Program - Intervention for children who stutter

Delivering therapy through a play-based approach, Eunice firmly believes that children learn best through fun and play. A major part of her work is also educational, where she involves and trains parents to support their child at home. Family-centred care is fundamental in Eunice’s practice because she knows it takes a village to raise a child. She often partners with parents to collaborate with other family members, teachers, and other health professionals to provide coordinated care.

Eunice provides services in English and Chinese. She is fluent in Cantonese and speaks conversational Mandarin. Eunice expects to be listed as a Registered Autism Service Provider (RASP) shortly.

Eunice works at the clinic on Fridays. She is currently accepting new clients.

Therapy Assistants

Klarissa Khong & Mikhaila Laano

Our TAs can work with OT, SLP and BC caseloads under supervisions of one of our clinicians. You must speak to your OT/SLP/BC to get approval for seeing a therapy assistant, to ensure appropriate fit. Klarissa & Mikhaila both have experience with young children, school-aged kids, and adolescents. They have worked in both clinic and recreation settings. They are also both students and are studying Kinesiology and Social Work respectively, before applying to OT & SLP programs. Klarissa works in the clinic on Saturday mornings and can do nearby home/community visits after-school/evenings on weekdays. If your child could use support attending a leisure/recreation activity or learning transit routes, this is a great way to get hands-on, real-time support. Mikhaila works in the clinic Monday & Saturday afternoons. Her focus is on speech, language, communication and social/play skills. She is excited to use sensory-based regulation strategies and executive function skills to help her clients get more out of their sessions.