Open-captioned performances, touch tours, audio-described performances and autism/sensory-friendly performances available for upcoming theater productions.

Chicago’s Lifeline Theatre offers a number of accessible shows this fall and winter for individuals with disabilities. A full list of the theater’s accessibility services and upcoming special performances is at www.lifelinetheatre.com/accessibility/.

For people who are deaf or hard-of-hearing, Lifeline has several open captioned performances of productions for children and adults that feature a text display of the words and sounds heard during a production.

For people who are blind or have low vision, the theater offers pre-show touch tours that let audience members visit the set, feel the props and costumes and meet the characters before the performance. Audio-described performances provide a live commentary by trained describers, interspersed with the actors’ dialogue.

Autism/sensory-friendly performances for children are also scheduled and provide a relaxed experience for individuals on the autism spectrum and others with cognitive and developmental disabilities.

Anyone interested in more information can contact Accessibility Coordinator Erica Foster directly at (773) 761-4477, ext. 703, or  access@lifelinetheatre.com, or in person at the Lifeline Box Office (6912 N. Glenwood Ave, Chicago, IL 60626) Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

 

 

The American Red Cross is installing free smoke alarms as part of its Home Fire Campaign.

The American Red Cross and its partners have launched the Home Fire Campaign to reduce deaths and injuries caused by home fires by 25 percent over five years. The American Red Cross asks every household in America to take two simple steps to help save lives: check or install smoke alarms and practice fire drills at home.

As part of this effort, the Red Cross will provide and install smoke alarms in your home at no charge. To request a free installation, you can fill out this form and return to Jamie Beaver, Disaster Program Manager, at 2674 N. Main St. in Decatur or Jamie.Beaver@redcross.org.

You can also request a free smoke alarm installation at https://getasmokealarm.org/. After submitting your request, an American Red Cross representative will be in touch with information on installation availability in your area.

 

 

Family partners will provide a firsthand perspective on how children and their families live with a disability.

The Illinois Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and related Disabilities Program (IL LEND)  prepares graduate students, working professionals, family members and others to serve as a leader in improving the quality of life of children and families with neurodevelopmental disabilities. The program focuses on leadership development, advocacy, research, community engagement and clinical skills for those who plan to work with people with disabilities. LEND’s ultimate goal is to improve the health and well-being of people with disabilities.

LEND is looking for families to participate in its “Family Visit Assignment,” which gives the program’s trainees a firsthand perspective of the many ways that children and their families live with a disability.

Participating families will host LEND family visits. During these visits, a small group (two to three people) will go to the family’s home for one to one-and-half hours and ask questions about their needs, services and supports they have accessed on behalf of their family member with a disability.

Families who complete the family visit are offered an honorarium payment of $50 from the University of Illinois.

To be eligible to receive the honorarium, families must:

•  Be able to provide a Social Security Number, Federal Employer ID Number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number
•  Not be employed by the University of Illinois (salaried or unsalaried)
•  If previously employed by the University of Illinois, be off payroll for 12 months

If you are interested in participating, please contact Regina Meza, Project Coordinator, at (312) 996-8905 or rmeza3@uic.edu.

Program open to all youth age 18 and under to fill the nutritional gap during the summer months.

Many families across the state depend on their children’s schools to provide regular, healthy meals. The Illinois State Board of Education manages the Summer Meals program to ensure children have continued access to free and nutritious meals and snacks during the summer months when school is out.

The program serves children and teens age 18 and younger.

To find a meal site near you, call (800) 359-2163, text “FoodIL” or “ComidasIL” to 877-877, or visit SummerMealsIllinois.org. The days and times of operation vary by site.

To learn more about this year’s Summer Meals program, click here.

Initiative aims to improve employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

Equip for Equality’s Employment Rights Helpline is a new service that provides free advice for employees and job seekers in Illinois. This initiative, made possible by a grant from The Chicago Community Trust, aims to expand employment opportunities for people with disabilities in Illinois.

The helpline staff can:

• Discuss your rights under the ADA
• Answer your employment rights questions
• Assist with reasonable accommodation requests
• Help you understand your options
• Share fact sheets, sample letters and forms
• Provide referrals
• Offer other assistance as needed

Contact information for the helpline:
Voice/Relay: (844) RIGHTS-9 (toll-free) or (844) 744-4879 (toll-free)
TTY: (800) 610-2779 (tty)
Email: employment@equipforequality.org
Web: http://www.equipforequality.org/employment

Peoria practice earns national distinction for its teamwork and focus on patients.

The University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria is pleased to announce that its University Pediatrics practice has earned Patient-Centered Medical Home recognition from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) for using evidence-based, patient-centered care.

The NCQA’s Patient-Centered Medical Home is a model of primary care that combines teamwork and information technology to improve care, improve patients’ experience of care and reduce costs. Each patient’s care is overseen by clinician-led care teams that coordinate treatment across the healthcare system.

University Pediatrics is the only fully academic model of primary pediatric out-patient health care management available in the Peoria area. All of the clinicians are faculty of the University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria and each holds the highest level of certification. University Pediatrics also is the only practice in the area whose clinicians see their own patients who have been hospitalized.

The University of Illinois at Chicago’s Division of Specialized Care for Children (DSCC) partners with private and public agencies across the state to promote the high national standards of care for children with special healthcare needs. DSCC staff worked with University Pediatrics’ quality improvement team to help achieve the NCQA recognition.

To learn more about this recognition and University Pediatrics, click here.

Museum provides accommodations for visitors with accessibility needs.

The DuPage Children’s Museum designates the third Thursday of each month as a time for families of children with special needs (e.g., mobility, visual impairments and autism spectrum) to enjoy the museum. Accommodations are made so all children can participate in general programs, and resources are available to help visitors structure their visit.

Reduced membership/daily admission for all families with an Illinois Medicaid card is as follows: $2 daily admission per person with your Medicaid card (proof of All Kids/Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services insurance) or $10 for a family membership for a year.

All siblings are invited to attend special needs nights. Caregivers, such as nurses or therapists, are admitted free with an employee ID.

Upcoming special needs nights are Feb. 16, March 16 and April 20.

For more information, visit https://dupagechildrens.org/visit/accessibility/.

Helpful instructions for how to create an IEP binder for your child.

Understood.org features an effective way that you can organize your child’s individualized education program (IEP) materials to better track progress and improve communication with their IEP team. A parent advocate and former teacher gives step-by-step instructions for how to create an IEP binder that sorts your child’s evaluation reports, IEP, report cards and other paperwork.

The article includes an IEP binder checklist, school contact sheet, parent-school communication log and IEP goal tracker that you can download and print for your own binder.

Read more here.

The health care law has improved coverage for both children with disabilities and their parents.

Recent reports from the Urban Institute show how the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has improved health care coverage for special needs children and their families.

One report notes that children are more likely to have health insurance when their parents are also covered. This coverage often means conditions are diagnosed earlier and that families are more likely to utilize preventive services, such as developmental screenings and immunizations.

Read more about how families are making the most of their coverage and other benefits under the ACA at the Family Voices blog.

Your child will still receive the same vaccinations, but your provider will bill your All Kids insurance differently.

The Illinois Department of Pubic Health announced changes coming to the way providers bill insurance for vaccinations. Although families should not see a change in the vaccinations your child receives, it will change the way providers are reimbursed for those vaccinations.

If your provider has any questions about how to bill for your child’s vaccinations, please have them call the Illinois Department of Public Health at (217) 786-7500.

View the provider notice.