Health

Achieving and maintaining good health is essential so that people with disabilities can participate in education, productive work, recreation, and all aspects of community life. Children and adults with disabilities are at risk for having special health care needs that often are not adequately addressed by health care professionals. The Partnership is committed to implementing projects and activities that support the training of health care and related professionals and paraprofessionals in interdisciplinary settings. Our goal is to reduce the disparities that families and people with disabilities experience when accessing health care and related services. 

The Partnership works collaboratively with key state and national leaders, as well as community providers, to address health promotion and education for people with disabilities and their families. Promoting the health and well-being of all people with disabilities is an ongoing focus and includes efforts in the early identification of children with autism, health promotion and prevention of secondary conditions, health care transitions, and reducing the risk of abuse and neglect. We are actively involved in training health professionals and related school personnel as they become the next generation of leaders. We are committed to reaching professionals, families, and community members through training, technical assistance, dissemination, and research activities. All activities are weighted toward creating environments where children and their families can learn, grow, and experience fulfilling lives in supportive communities.

Communication and Health Advocacy Training - (CHAT) 

CHAT provides health literacy training to adults with disabilities. CHAT has two parts, the first is training for adults with disabilities, the second is a guide for supporters and families.

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Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Program

Through funding by the Virginia Department of Health’s Early Hearing Detection & Intervention program (EHDI), support is provided to parents just learning of their newborn’s hearing loss and visits are conducted with hospitals and audiologist practices to learn more about hearing screening processes for infants and toddlers.

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Family to Family (F2F) Network of Virginia

With funding from the Maternal and Child Health Bureau, the Partnership for People with Disabilities' Center for Family Involvement operates Virginia's Family to Family Health Information Center (called the Family to Family Network of Virginia). Visit www.centerforfamilyinvolvement.org for more information.

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Healing Narratives

The goal of Healing Narratives is to capture the experiences of BIPOC with IDD (co-researchers) regarding their experiences with their patient-doctor communication and disseminate the information on how to improve patient-doctor communication by using participatory research methods.

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Healing Narratives

I-CAN! Accessibility Project

I-CAN! is a collaboration between the Partnership for People with Disabilities and the VCU School of Social Work and is supported by grant funding through the Virginia Sexual and Domestic Violence Victims Fund by the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services. The mission of the I-CAN! Accessibility Project is to promote and facilitate awareness about the abuse of people with disabilities and to advocate for equal access to services and legal protections. The project began in 2007 and has successfully received continuation grants every two years.

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Virginia Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities  (Va-LEND)

The Va-LEND program is committed to the preparation of professionals, family members and people with disabilities statewide in the field of childhood neurodevelopmental disabilities who will assume leadership roles within health care and disability service systems. The interdisciplinary program provides a 12-24 month curriculum of interactive seminars, clinical and community-based practica, planned grassroots and systems level policy activities, and for most trainees, a family mentorship experience. The curriculum emphasizes all aspects of neurodevelopmental and related disabilities, social and family environments across the life course, the interdisciplinary approach, leadership and research.

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