A stretch of Alberta highway with a setting sun in the distance. Taken by a Qi Creative coach!

One of the highlights of working at Qi Creative, or being a client of Qi Creative, is our remote practice model.

Whether you live in a rural town, a reservation, an acreage, or you’re looking for work that will take you on the road, read more to learn about our remote practice delivering therapy across Alberta!

What is Remote Practice?

Coach Emily sits in her car, a black SUV, as she prepares to see clients for the day.

Remote Practice means that Qi Creative coaches are equipped to drive to your home for services. Rather than driving to our offices to meet us, we can visit you at a time, date and place that fits your schedule.

We have offered Remote Practice options for families since our company was formed over a decade ago, and find this has been a great convenience and logistical relief for hundreds of clients.

Families are often balancing many other responsibilities, and especially for those who live outside of Edmonton, it can be a great deal of stress figuring out how to make therapy visits fit in to your life.

Scheduling Can Be Tough

A person sits in front of a computer screen displaying a calendar, with various colored blocks representing different events throughout the week.

Have you ever received a gift card for a restaurant or a salon, but found it exhausting to actually make the call, set the appointment, and use the card?

This is because there are many constraints in our lives that can fatigue us out of making plans:

Arranging child care so you can attend an appointment, or for other siblings while a child receives care
Taking care of/nursing young infants, and needing to be close during their early years of growth
Finding and affording parking, if a location doesn’t have free parking
Planning public transit routes if you do not use a personal vehicle, and the time taken to go from stop to stop
Struggling to meet your next appointment(s) if the session runs over time, or traffic is poor
Driving for long hours and the cost of refilling your vehicle, especially if you live out of town
Inaccessible venues, if you use mobility aids
Having only early mornings or late evenings free, when the resources you need only operate during regular working hours
Executive dysfunction making it difficult to arrive to appointments
Medical sensitivity, and needing to limit unnecessary public exposure where possible

With all these (and more) factors, offering Remote Practice options for in-home visits, telepractice and video practice options should be the norm for more companies out there—and for us, we’ve been doing it since 2007!

With a Remote Practice model, many of the above concerns disappear—and any extra costs and time burdens that go with it.

We Take Therapy To You

Coaches Jon and Sam board a commercial plane to serve clients in west Alberta.

How do we bring therapy across Alberta? Here are a few ways we make remote visits happen:

If you are funded through a program such as FSCD or Jordan’s Principle, travel costs may be included, or subsidized, with your contractual agreement
We have a large collection of our own materials and equipment that can be brought to your home to complete assessments, engage in new strategies, or test equipment and apps before buying yourself
If there are other areas in the community that you would like to work on (eg. strategies are working at home, now we want to try it at school or at the skating rink), we can arrange visits in those areas too!
If you are a school looking for professional development ideas, we can facilitate workshops and parent groups in your community
If your location is particularly far away (eg. 4+ hours out of Edmonton), we cover overnight lodging for our employees

Can I still visit Edmonton even if I live out of town?

Our brick office front on Alberta Avenue.

Of course you can!

Our office in Edmonton has multipurpose rooms, equipment, and all PPE necessary to carry out therapy and coaching at our location.

Like any other service visit, notify us in advance so we can prepare the space and inform the rest of our team to minimize any outward distractions or foot traffic to fit any privacy and sensory needs.

Some families may be visiting Edmonton for other commitments and would like to also see their Qi Creative coach while they’re in town—a great way to make the most of your own travel time!

Life On The Road

Coaches Sam and Jon sit in a car together as they drive through the Alberta prairies.

If you like to travel, Qi Creative coaches enjoy a working life that involves visiting homes, schools, and other community venues throughout the year.

Many of our coaches are seasoned road warriors, as they reach clients in rural settlements, family farms, and small counties and hamlets. Travel time is included as part of working hours and coaches are provided with road safety kits.

In the cold Alberta winter months especially, we make regular use of AMA Road Reports and communicate amongst each other to ensure we stay connected and safe on those snowy days.

If we are unable to make it to your location and have to cancel on our end, we will reschedule without any cost to your contract or late cancellation fees.

How to Get Started

Fill out an Intake Form (rainbow button on the side of this page) to get started with us!

Therapeutic services of all kinds are costly, but especially if you live outside of Edmonton, fuel costs, travel time, and any additional child care costs can make access to healthcare difficult, even if you have coverage.

If you are seeking a service provider, we hope this blog gave a look both at how Remote Practice works, and how it can benefit families. If you’re a student, grad, or long practicing professional, we hope this blog was an interesting glance into how we deliver much needed services to remote families in need.

We hope you enjoyed this glance into our flexible, travel savvy practice that saves Albertan families time and money—and whether you’re looking for employment or looking for services, our doors are always open!