AAIDD F.Y.I.
January 2008, Vol.8, No.1
Visit www.aaidd.org/FYI/ to access current and past issues of this monthly newsletter. Subscribe at http://www.responsetrack.net/aamr/sign_up.
The American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD) wishes the readers of AAIDD F.Y.I. a very happy year 2008.
Dear AAIDD Friends and Colleagues:
DR. LEONARD ABBEDUTO IS NEW EDITOR OF THE AMERICAN JOURNAL ON MENTAL RETARDATION
Dr. Leonard Abbeduto, Associate Director for Behavioral Sciences at the Waisman Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is the new Editor for the American Journal on Mental Retardation (AJMR), one of the top three journals in special education and rehabilitation according to the latest industry impact factor rankings. Dr. Abbeduto takes over editorship of AJMR from Dr. William E. MacLean, Jr., Professor and Director of Clinical Training for mental retardation and pediatric psychology at the University of Wyoming. Click here to read an interview with Dr. Abbeduto on his vision for this premier journal in the biological, behavioral, and educational sciences for the past 100 years.
AJMR is published by the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD). To read a Table of Contents of the current issue of AJMR, click here. To learn more about the journal, click here. For subscription information, click here, or send an email to AJMR@allenpress.com.
CROSS-CULTURAL STUDY OF MOTHERS RAISING A CHILD WITH AN INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY REVEALS POOR MENTAL HEALTH, INCREASED LEVELS OF CHILD-RELATED STRESS, AND POORER FAMILY FUNCTIONING
A study of Irish, Jordanian, and Taiwanese mothers raising a child with an intellectual disability revealed that irrespective of the culture, the presence of a child with intellectual disabilities affects families in similar ways. Foremost, problem behaviors exhibited by the child had a significant impact on the mothers' levels of stress and their perceptions of family functioning. In all three countries, mothers experienced poor mental health, increased levels of child-related stress, and poorer family functioning. The study also found that the mothers' well-being was not alleviated by access to professional supports or use of coping strategies.
To read the entire study titled, “ The impact on mothers of bringing up a child with intellectual disabilities: A cross-cultural study” by Roy McConkey et al., click here.
ADVANCING DISABILITY POLICY IN AN ELECTION YEAR SEMINAR TO BE HELD IN WASHINGTON, DC, FROM MARCH 2-4, 2008
The Annual Disability Policy Seminar hosted every year by The Arc of the United States along with a group of other disability organizations, will focus this year on the unique challenges and opportunities facing the U.S. Congress and the White House as the 2008 political campaign proceeds. On Sunday, March 2, seminar participants will begin two days of in-depth public policy discussions, and on March 4, participants will visit the Capitol Hill where issues such as the following will take center stage: Budget and Appropriations; Entitlements; Developmental Disabilities Act; Health; Housing; Social Security; Americans with Disabilities Act; and Employment.
To register for “Advancing Disability Policy in an Election Year”, visit https://aaiddonline.aaidd.org/events/EV04EventDetail.aspx?eventID=1051. The seminar will be held at The Hyatt Regency Hotel in Washington, DC.
THE MORE SOCIALLY DISADVANTAGED A CHILD WITH AN INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY IS, THE GREATER THE RISK OF DEVELOPING PSYCHIATRIC DISORDERS, NEW STUDY SAYS
A new study from Lancaster University finds that a significant proportion of the increased risk of psychiatric disorders among children with intellectual disabilities may be due to their increased rate of exposure to psychosocial disadvantage, such as poverty. In the study, 641 children (3.5% of the total sample) were identified as having intellectual disabilities and 17,774 as not having them. The prevalence of a wide range of psychiatric disorders was significantly higher—at 36%--among children with intellectual disabilities than among children without the disability.
The study is published in the December 2007 issue of the British Journal of Psychiatry. Read an abstract of “ Mental health of children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities in Britain” by Dr. Eric Emerson and Dr. Chris Hatton at http://bjp.rcpsych.org/cgi/content/abstract/191/6/493. To read a press release issued on the study by the Royal College of Psychiatrists, visit http://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/pressparliament/pressreleases2006/pr971.aspx.
CENTERS FOR MEDICARE & MEDICAID SERVICES RELEASES NATION’S FIRST RANKING OF POOR-PERFORMING NURSING HOMES
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has identified 128 special focus facilities (SFFs) or the poor performing nursing homes out of the 16,000 active nursing homes in the United States (numbers as of October 2007). These nursing homes have had a history of serious quality problems not corrected within a reasonable time period. Once on the SFF list, the nursing homes are closely inspected and risk losing their eligibility to receive Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements if they don't show significant improvements within 18-24 months.
To read a press release from CMS on the release of the nursing home rankings, click here.
To access the SFF list, click here.
To read a Guide to Choosing a Nursing Home , visit http://www.medicare.gov/Publications/Pubs/pdf/nhguide.pdf.
FREE TRAIN-THE-TRAINER SEMINARS TO BE HELD NATIONWIDE TO INCREASE ACCESSIBILITY TO TRANSPORTATION FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES
Easter Seals Project ACTION is holding free nationwide train-the-trainer seminars titled, “People on the Move: Using All Transportation Options (ADA and Beyond...)” to offer basic tools needed to expand community transportation options for people with disabilities. The anticipated use of the training and the toolkit offered is to teach individuals to use fixed-route public transportation, train transportation personnel to serve customers with disabilities, and identify and fix environmental barriers that prevent access and use of public transit. Individuals who typically attend “People on the Move” include human service providers such as job coaches, independent living specialists, and support coordinators; transportation providers such as bus operators, ADA coordinators, and municipal planners; and school personnel such as, teachers and transition coordinators.
For a schedule of upcoming locations and to download a brochure, visit http://projectaction.easterseals.com/site/PageServer?pagename=ESPA_people_move.
AAIDD F.Y.I. is compiled by Anna Prabhala, Editor and is published by the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (Formerly AAMR). Please submit comments, suggestions, tips, and news to annap@aaidd.org. For more information on becoming an AAIDD member, visit http://www.aaidd.org/Membership/index.shtml. To purchase AAIDD products, visit http://bookstore.aaidd.org.
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