PALATINE, Ill.–June 27, 2011—Healthcare leaders,  community and business partners, all joined Little City Foundation residents, family members  and staff to commemorate  the one-year anniversary of Little City’s Center for Health & Wellness by celebrating the many accomplishments, benefits and goals it has for the future.

 

Located on Little City’s therapeutic, 56-acre Palatine campus, the Center for Health & Wellness provides primary medical and oral care, social and emotional behavioral health, recreational health and nutritional and dietary health to children and adults with autism and other intellectual and developmental disabilities.

 

“The value and foundation we have here are the relationships being built between the residents and the staff,” stated Bob Shears Director of Support Services. “Many individuals at Little City stop by the center on a regular basis just to share their healthcare experience and learn more about how they can take better control of their health and wellness. It is very empowering,” he continued.

 

By engaging in a partnership with Northwest Community Hospital to deliver medical and oral healthcare services to all Little City residents, the need for emergency room visits has decreased 60 to 75 percent since May 2010.

 

Through this partnership, the center also created and implemented a 16-week long research study that focuses on dietary and fitness interventions for Little City adults. Participants are sad that it is ending soon and staff is looking at ways to maintain these initiatives on a daily basis.

 

Before the center opened, residents would have to travel 90 miles round-trip to Rockford to receive oral care, which added an extra level of trauma and inconvenience. With the implementation of a dental desensitization program with an on-site hygienist and dentist, there has been a decrease in the use of sedation techniques. Residents are now taken through their visit on a step-by-step basis to ensure they are comfortable and receive the care they need.

 

The Center for Health & Wellness includes a renovated and well-equipped Fitness Center, which was specifically developed for children and adults with disabilities, including those confined to wheelchairs. The Fitness Center provides unique opportunities and accessibility for individuals to engage in exercise activities and improve their overall health and wellness. It also includes a pool and a playground designed specifically for individuals with autism, which gives children a greater chance to use gross motor skills while playing.

 

A pool lift gives individuals who use a wheelchair the ability to lower themselves into the water with minimal help from staff. This enables them to feel safe and in control as they enter the pool. Little City also launched a program to teach children how to swim by using the Special Olympics guide. In addition, all recreational staff is certified to make sure more time is available for children and adults to engage in aquatic therapy.

 

To ensure better nutritional and dietary health, the center provides weekly nutritional classes to those in Little City’s adult program. These classes teach adults how to make better choices in the food they buy and eat. In order to compliment this initiative, the children and adult menus on campus have been changed. There is now a larger emphasis on fruits and vegetables and meals include whole grains.

 

The Center for Health & Wellness has many future projects it hopes to work on, including telehealth, automating clinical and medical records and expanding internships. Little City also hopes to one day have the ability to offer the center’s services to a broader regional community of children and adults with disabilities as services are presently limited to individuals who live within agency owned and operated facilities.

 

To support individuals with autism and other intellectual and developmental disabilities, visit www.littlecity.org/support.

  

To learn more about Little City on Facebook, visit: www.facebook.com/LittleCityFoundation.

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About Little City Foundation
For more than 50 years, Little City Foundation has developed innovative and personalized programs to fully assist and empower children and adults with autism and other intellectual and developmental disabilities.  With a commitment to attaining a greater quality of life for Illinois’ most vulnerable citizens, Little City actively promotes choice, person-centered planning and a holistic approach to health and wellness.  Little City’s ChildBridge services include in-home personal and family supports, clinical and behavior intervention, 24/7 residential services and special needs foster care and adoption.  Little City’s LifePath Adult Services offers a variety of residential options, employment opportunities, home-based services, case management, day supports, Special Olympics, an award-winning Center for the Arts and more. The organization has a 56-acre campus in Palatine and offices in Chicago.  Visit www.littlecity.org.