Medical/Health and Wellness Resources
It’s easy to view self-care as a low priority when your child is diagnosed with a serious illness. Your role as a parent and parenting partner has unexpectedly changed. The child has urgent and complex medical needs; you must manage appointments and service providers, and learn new information about the disease and medical treatment—all while tending to the needs of other family members, work and/or other responsibilities.
The Courageous Parents Network provides this guide to help parents make time and find ways to take care of themselves.
Tracheostomy.com (Aaron’s Tracheostomy Page) is an independent, family-run website that provides information about home care for children with tracheostomies (trachs) as well as parent-to-parent networking and support.
Adaptive Adventures Recreation Opportunities
Adaptive Adventures focuses on providing children, adults and veterans with physical disabilities the opportunity to achieve greater independence in outdoor sports while experiencing camaraderie and the benefits of recreation and adventure. Their ongoing programs, camps and clinics include cycling, climbing, kayaking, paddle boarding, dragon boat racing, skiing, snowboarding, waterskiing, wakeboarding and rafting.
Adaptive Adventures travels the country to provide direct program services. Programming is offered to participants and their families free of charge or significantly subsidized. Adaptive Adventures believes cost should never be a barrier to someone’s participation in quality outdoor adaptive sports opportunities.
Visit the Adaptive Adventures website for information about programs and events in Illinois.
Administration for Community Living (ACL)
The Administration for Community Living helps people of all ages with disabilities and older adults live where they choose, with the people they choose, and with the ability to participate fully in their communities. ACL provides information, online tools, and resources to help you access disability networks and services such as transportation, housing, and more.
Administration for Community Living resources include:
- The Disability Information and Access Line (DIAL) for information and access to essential services
- An easy-to-use A to Z list of programs, networks, and ACL focus areas
- The latest COVID-19 updates, vaccine and testing locations
Adolescent Suicide Postvention Resources Hub
The Adolescent Suicide Postvention Resources Hub provides articles, books and other comprehensive resources to support adolescents and their communities as they navigate the grieving process and find a path towards healing. Resources are available for individuals, communities and school districts.
“Postvention” is a term to describe best practices after a suicide. The Adolescent Suicide Postvention Resources Hub offers information on topics including:
- Communicating and understanding postvention
- Parent resources and support groups
- 24/7 support
Adult Congenital Heart Disease (ACHD) Clinic Directory
The Adult Congenital Heart Association’s ACHD Clinic Directory provides information on ACHD Board Certified providers certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) and ACHA ACHD Accredited Centers.
You can search for clinics by zip code and state. You can find more details and health information on the Adult Congenital Heart Association’s website.
CaringInfo provides free advance directives and instructions for each state that you can download and save.
Adventures Unlimited in the Chicagoland Area
Adventures Unlimited is a free, state-funded respite program in Illinois that provides programming and events for participants with intellectual and developmental disabilities and respite to caregivers.
Adventures Unlimited offers two-hour recreation opportunities and events focusing on fitness, art, media training and food preparation for adults and children as young as 4 years old.
To be eligible for Adventures Unlimited, individuals must have a documented developmental disability. They must also not be enrolled in any other Medicaid waiver program.
Advocate Dental Center in Chicago
Advocate Dental Center provides a wide range of dental services for adults and children with developmental disabilities through its Special Patient Dental Care Program. The program’s services include:
- Dental exams and cleanings
- X-rays
- Fillings
- Root canal treatments
- Extractions, crowns and tooth replacements
- IV sedation
- Operating room dentistry
Call (773) 871-2188 to discuss Special Patient Dental Care Program eligibility and appointment scheduling.
AeroAngel offers free, private jet flights for medically fragile children who need to travel long distances for life-saving medical care and cannot fly commercially due to their condition. AeroAngel coordinates flights across all 50 states and can access both major and small regional airports to minimize travel time for families.
Parents, family members, friends and medical professionals can request a flight on behalf of a child in need of life-saving medical care. See AeroAngel’s Request a Flight page for frequently asked questions and eligibility details.
If you have more questions, please email Info@Aeroangel.org or call (303) 817-7355.