Making a difference for special needs children and families in Illinois.

The Champions for Children Award was initiated in 2005 to recognize exceptional individuals who have worked with DSCC and positively impacted the lives of Illinois children with special healthcare needs and their families.  The 2015 honorees are:

Rhonda Chaney Best, BA – Community Agency Award & Family Member Award

Rhonda has partnered with Specialized Care for Children in her role as a speaker for Family Matters Parent Training and Information Center (PTIC) in the northern region of Illinois.  Rhonda, who also provides advocacy services for children through the Educational Access Project for the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services at Northern Illinois University, became active in child advocacy when her daughter, Betsy, was born 34 years ago.  “With multiple disabilities and interacting with multiple systems, I was made aware that without advocacy, Betsy would not get the help she needed,” said Rhonda, who blends stories from her personal experiences during her presentations at Specialized Care for Children’s monthly parent support group meetings.

Kyle Childers, DMD, MS – Dentist Award

Dr. Childers has been creating beautiful smiles in southern Illinois for 25 years.  The owner of Childers Orthodontics, he works with Specialized Care for Children staff to meet the needs of children with special orthodontic challenges, providing them with a positive transformation that has life-long effects.  A firm believer in professional collaboration and giving back to the community, Dr. Childers – born and raised in Marion, Illinois, founded the southern Illinois chapter of Smile for a Lifetime (S4L), a non-profit organization that provides orthodontic treatment to patients who would otherwise not be able to receive orthodontic care.  He also offers academic scholarships each year to students in southern Illinois.  Dr. Childers has greatly enriched the children and families he serves through his compassionate care.

Lindsey Hird-McCorry, BSN, RN, CPN – Health Care Professional Award

Lindsey has worked at Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago for 14 years, including the past three years as Nurse Coordinator for the Pulmonary Habilitation Program and Transitional Care Unit. In this role, Lindsey coordinates training for caregivers of chronically ventilated patients and serves as the primary liaison between patients and their families, Specialized Care for Children Care Coordinators (CCs), providers, staff nurses, respiratory therapists, support services, home care agencies, and home equipment companies. Named the 2014 recipient of Lurie Children’s Hospital’s Nurse Exemplar Award (Family Educator), Lindsey works closely with Specialized Care for Children’s Chicago Home Care team, providing timely information and crucial support at the hospital.

Nancy Monica – Community Agency Award

Nancy is Director of TeleHealth in the McHenry County Office of the Epilepsy Foundation of North Central Illinois, Iowa, and Nebraska. She has partnered with Specialized Care for Children to connect children with epilepsy and their families to services in the community. Deeply rooted in the Foundation since 1998, Nancy has received numerous honors for her fervent advocacy efforts, including National Advocate of the Year (National Epilepsy Foundation), Chicago Volunteer of the Year (Chicago Epilepsy Foundation), and the Motorola Inc. TEAM Award. She is also one of the three founding members of Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy (CURE), which has raised over $10-million for epilepsy research.

SJN Electric, Inc. – Vendor Award

SJN Electric, located in Swansea, Illinois, has been essential to the well-being of numerous medically fragile and technologically dependent children in the Metro-East area.  SJN Electric provides the necessary electrical modifications and system upgrades to support the technology needs of children served by Specialized Care for Children, Home Care Program.  Owned by Steven Neumeyer, SJN has traveled great distances to provide services – including a trip that was more than two hours one-way – to assist with a family’s electrical needs.  Without SJN’s dedication and willingness to serve these families, many children would require extended hospitalizations or re-hospitalizations, potentially further exacerbating their illnesses.

You can also read about the 2015 Champions for Children honorees in the story published on the UIC News website here.

How Specialized Care for Children helps.

The interview with Executive Director Thomas F. Jerkovitz on WTAX 1240 AM/107.5 FM in Springfield aired during the station’s Morning Newswatch program December 3.

Discussion centered on the types of services available for Illinois children with special healthcare needs and their families.

Daisy Chavez was honored with the UIC Division of Specialized Care for Children 2015 Award of Merit and Distinction.

Chavez is a bilingual Social Work Aide in the Chicago Home Care Regional Office.  “Ms. Chavez consistently demonstrates a positive, ‘can-do’ attitude with both families and co-workers,” said Thomas F. Jerkovitz, DSCC Executive Director.  “She is a wonderful resource for families and her contributions to DSCC in a time of programmatic change have been invaluable.”

Chavez began her career at Specialized Care for Children in May of 2008.  The annual Award of Merit and Distinction allows the organization’s leadership to recognize, appreciate, and honor outstanding employees.  Individuals are nominated by their colleagues for exceptional contributions to the children and families they serve, and the organization’s overall mission.

The release is also available on the UIC News website.

Dr. Kathy Swafford, a pediatrician in Southern Illinois, honored for excellence in rural healthcare.

The Illinois Rural Health Association awarded Dr. Swafford the Rural Physician of Excellence Award on September 14, 2015. The award recognizes Dr. Swafford’s work as a board certified pediatrician and specialist in child abuse prevention and treatment in 40 counties across southern Illinois.

We’re proud to have Dr. Swafford serving on our Medical Advisory Board to offer her expert opinion and unique insights.

Read the full article at The Southern Illinoisan.

Find out how families and healthcare providers can partner to improve quality and effectiveness of care.

The goal of the recorded webinar is to understand:

• principles of family-professional collaboration
• benefits of family-centered care in the medical home
• levels of family involvement and opportunities to progress
• Standards on Family Professional Partnerships incorporated into the 2014 Standards for Systems of Care

This webinar is presented by Dorelia Rivera, mother of a child with special healthcare needs.

This project is sponsored by Specialized Care for Children, the Illinois Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the Illinois Leadership Network of Neurodevelopmental and related Disabilities.

For more information, call us at (800) 322-3722 or email us.

HFS posted the proposed amendment for the medically fragile, technology dependent waiver.

On June 19, 2015, The Department of Healthcare and Family Services  (HFS) issued  a Public Notice regarding a proposed amendment for the waiver for children who are medically fragile, technology dependent.  The actual notice is posted below.

We are posting this information on our website, as well as notifying our home nursing agencies and home medical equipment providers directly about this proposed waiver amendment.

If you wish to comment on the proposed waiver changes, HFS will be accepting public input until July 18, 2015. Those interested in providing input are asked to email feedback to the HFS web portal email address HFS.SWTransitionPlan@illinois.gov or mail their written comments to:

Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services
ATTN:  Waiver Management
201 South Grand Ave East FL2
Springfield, IL 62763

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STATE OF ILLINOIS
HEALTHCARE AND FAMILY SERVICES
PROPOSED AMENDMENT OF HOME AND COMMUNITY BASED SERVICES (HCBS) WAIVER
HCBS WAIVER FOR CHILDREN WHO ARE MEDICALLY FRAGILE, TECHNOLOGY DEPENDENT – IL0278
 
NOTICE OF PUBLIC INFORMATION

1. Statute requiring agency to publish information concerning proposed changes in methods and standards for establishing medical assistance payment rates for medical services in the Illinois Register: 5 ILCS 100/5-70(c)
2. Summary of Information: The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS), in conjunction with the University of Illinois at Chicago – Division of Specialized Care for Children (UIC-DSCC) propose to amend the HCBS Waiver for Children who are Medically Fragile, Technology Dependent – IL0278. The proposed waiver amendment includes revisions and additions to the MFTD waiver capacity, Affordable Care Act (ACA) and qualifications for care coordination.

Illinois seeks public input into the development of the HCBS Waiver for Children who are Medically Fragile, Technology Dependent – IL0278 amendment through two separate statements of public notice and input.

1. Electronic public notice posted on the HFS website at http://www2.illinois.gov/hfs/MedicalPrograms/HCBS/Pages/default.aspx with a link to this website on the UIC-DSCC website.
2. For persons that may not have access to the website, the proposed waiver amendment is available at UIC-DSCC offices across the State.

In addition to the two methods of notification, the operating agency of the HCBS Waiver for Children who are Medically Fragile, Technology Dependent – IL0278 has emailed language located in this notification and the HFS website to its stakeholders which include provider agencies and care coordination entities. UIC-DSCC has requested that these entities inform the public of the opportunities to access a copy of the proposed waiver amendment including electronically at the HFS website or in person at any of the UIC-DSCC offices located across the State.

HFS will be accepting public input regarding the proposed amendment of the HCBS Waiver for Children who are Medically Fragile, Technology Dependent – IL0278 for a 30 day public comment period from June 19, 2015 through July 18, 2015. Those interested in providing input are asked to email feedback to the HFS web portal email address: HFS.SWTransitionPlan@illinois.gov; or mail their written comments to:

Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services
ATTN:  Waiver Management
201 South Grand Ave East FL2
Springfield, IL 62763

A summary of the public notice and comments will be incorporated into the renewal prior to HFS submitting to the Federal Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services (CMS). The summary will include modifications to the initial waiver amendment and the reasons why or who the State of Illinois did not adopt specific comments or recommendations.

Our Rockford parent support group is on Summer break.

The group usually meets on a monthly basis but is currently on Summer break. Meetings will resume in August. Look for upcoming events to be posted!

We help families through care coordination. Find out what that means.

Our mission is to “partner with Illinois families and communities to help children and youth with special healthcare needs connect to services and resources.”

Our website identifies areas of care coordination as How We Help. Each of these care coordination areas has a clickable page to describe how we can help.

To really understand the impact of our care coordination, read some of our Family Stories. These are real accounts from families we serve. They see the value in our care coordination and want to share their personal stories in hopes of reaching other families and connecting them to Specialized Care for Children.

You can also see examples of care coordination by reading stories from our staff. Look for news stories titled Care Coordination Stories.

We’re here to help. If you or someone you know needs our care coordination, contact us at  (800) 322-3722 or email.

Illinois county health departments receive equipment to screen infants and young children for hearing loss.

A total of 16 county health departments and the Southern Seven Health Department, which serves 7 counties in Southern Illinois, will receive special hearing screening equipment from Specialized Care for Children. These screenings are the first step in testing a child’s hearing.

Yesterday, staff from the first six of those county health departments learned how to use the otoacoustic emissions (OAE) screeners. The device sends sound into the ear and measures “echoes” that come back out into the ear canal. Based on the screening results, children may be referred for further testing.

The screeners are portable, so health departments will be able to use them at various clinic locations and even on home visits.

Counties receiving the OAE screeners include Adams, Bond, Clay, Coles, Crawford, Fayette, Jackson, Logan, Madison, Marion, Rock Island, Schuyler, Shelby, Tazewell, Warren and Whiteside. The Southern Seven Health Department that serves Alexander, Hardin, Johnson, Massac, Pope, Pulaski and Union will also receive the equipment.

Pictured above: Specialized Care for Children Director, Thomas Jerkovitz (standing), welcomes staff from the county health departments.

After a care coordinator spoke to a family support group, a reporter picked-up the story.

Our care coordinators do outreach activities throughout Illinois communities. We call it outreach, but it’s really any activity that builds a relationship with people in the community.

These relationships ensure that people in schools, medical offices, programs, agencies, and groups are aware of Specialized Care for Children’s services. These places often come in contact with families that could benefit from our help. If you know of a place we can connect with, please contact us!

When a care coordinator from our Champaign office spoke at a family support group held in a Decatur church, a reporter caught the story. The reporter spoke with the care coordinator to find out more about us and even called our Director for a phone interview. Read the full article at Herald-Review.com.