AUCD/DDS State Collaborations Overview

February 23, 2006

Improving Outcomes for Childhood Disability Decisions

Improving quality of referrals and evidence

• Develop and present training for variety of child service providers to describe appropriate referrals and documentation for potentially eligible children [Early intervention/early childhood service providers/administrators, Indian Health Services staff, teachers, community nurses].
• Coordinate SSA field office staff to conduct intake at clinics run by Centers in rural communities and urban children's hospital.
• Develop web-based distance learning course for speech language pathologists.
• Require AUCD/LEND trainees to visit DDS as part of Pediatric Intern Rotation.

Improving access to evidence

• Prepare "child resource lists" to help families identify all appropriate sources of medical/other relevant documentation for children's SSI application.
• Prepare family-friendly information to ensure parents provide all available
  medical/other relevant documentation.
  
• Assign clinical social workers to obtain standardized assessment of adaptive
  functioning in selected cases.
  
• Work with school administrators to improve access to school records.
  
• Work with hospital staff to expedite transmittal of necessary medical records.
  
• Pilot electronic transfer of data from major children's hospital.

Sharing clinical expertise with adjudicators

• Provide "curbside consults" for quick questions by e-mail or short telephone calls.
• Conduct "case consultations" to review difficult cases on regular basis [low
  birth weight, hearing impairments, speech/language delays, autism,
  behavioral problems, AD/HD, cognitive impairments].
  
• Develop and present skill training - how to interpret evaluation data for
  specific pediatric specialty areas [speech and language, audiology, cognitive
  and adaptive behavior in infants/young children].
  
• Develop and present professional training [autism spectrum disorders,
  AD/HD, language disorders, speech articulation problems, audiology, cochlear
  implants, neurodevelopment background for children with disabilities].
  
• Conduct selected consultative examinations.