Introduction

Introduction

Health problems that adversely affect the wellbeing of children and youth with developmental disabilities set the stage for life as an adult that may be further, and perhaps unnecessarily, compromised. A higher number of children with developmental disabilities are socially and economically disadvantaged, and they often lack the community services or social support to access needed care here in West Virginia. There are significant challenges to ensuring health care access for children and families with special needs in our rural, medically underserved state. Families often struggle throughout the process of accessing care– from getting the right diagnosis, to finding specialty care, to accessing community resources for even the most basic of health services.

The Including All Kids project is our first step in a journey of working with stakeholders– parents, caregivers, providers, and advocates—to better understand, give voice to, and prioritize the challenges families have within their respective communities around the state to accessing health care. Our goal is, with your help, to improve our health care system for kids with developmental disabilities.

Our objectives are to:

Raise Awareness

Assess Challenges

Initiate a Public Dialogue

Compile and Share Recommendations for Improving the System for Affected Families