Disability & Health

DISABILITY & HEALTH

The purpose of this 5-year project is to understand and address statewide and public health district-level needs related to reducing health disparities among adults with IDD/ML in Georgia.

DID YOU KNOW?

Approximately one in four United States adults have a disability.¹

Adults with disabilities living in the U.S. have poorer health outcomes compared to those without disabilities.² They are less likely to visit a doctor regularly, which can lead to or worsen health conditions and mental health concerns.³^,⁴^,⁵^,⁶

The health of adults with disabilities is influenced by policy, system, social, and environmental factors. ⁶^,⁷^,⁸^,⁹^,¹⁰ These factors include:

Many healthcare providers not accepting certain types of health insurance;
Lack of disability-specific training in medical, nursing, and other provider training programs;
Barriers in the built environment (like inaccessible transportation);
The high cost of health care and medications;
The health effects of experiencing disability-related discrimination throughout the life course.

For this project, we will complete 6 strategies and activities. These activities have been decided by CDC:

Build statewide and national partnerships.
Complete needs assessments to figure out what the major health problems are.
Train healthcare providers to treat people with IDD/ML.
Connect adults with IDD to routine care and health education in the places they live.
Offer health programs and support policy, systems, and environmental changes across the state.
Share what we learn with others.

CDC’s Disability and Health Data System (DHDS)

CDC’s Disability and Health Data System (DHDS) will be updated in mid-July to include 2022 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) data. DHDS provides quick and easy access to data on demographics and health topics among adults with and without reported functional disabilities across the United States. Epidemiologists, researchers, public health professionals, people with disabilities, and communities can use these data to inform state and local health promotion activities to improve the health and well-being of people with disabilities.

DHDS currently includes BRFSS data from 2016 – 2021. Visit the Disability and Health Data System to learn about the health status of people with and without disabilities in your state and some territories. In addition to the DHDS dashboard, CDC will update the Disability & Health State Profiles using 2022 BRFSS data. These fact sheets provide an overview of disability in each state, including the percentages and characteristics of adults with and without disabilities.

Project News

NOW RECRUITING! Any healthcare provider in Georgia is invited to complete our free, self-paced training, Responsive Practice: Providing Health Care and Screening to Individuals with Disabilities and Responsive Practice: Accessible and Adaptive Communication. 1.5 continue education credits are available! More info.

NOW RECRUITING! Are you an adult with an intellectual or developmental disability? Do you have unmet healthcare needs, or would you like to speak with someone about ways to enhance your health? Please sign up to join our Linkage Project! More info.

Partnerships

Project Advisory Workgroup (PAW)

Organizational Representatives

Georgia Council for Developmental Disabilities (GCDD)
- Representative: Alyssa Miller, PsyD, Public Policy Research & Development Director
- Georgia Council for Developmental Disabilities works to bring about social and policy changes that promote opportunities for the wide spectrum of diverse people/persons with developmental disabilities and their families to live, learn, work, play and worship in their communities.

United Cerebral Palsy Georgia (UCP-GA)
- Representative: Angela Easter, Chief Administrative Officer
- United Cerebral Palsy supports individuals and families living with intellectual and developmental disabilities (including cerebral palsy, autism, Down syndrome, spina bifida, traumatic brain injury, and more). UCP uses customized supports to maximize potential, discover talents, and develop skills to achieve personal goals.

GA Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD)
- Representatives: Dana Scott, MSN, RN, Director, Office of Health and Wellness and Nicole Arsenault, JD, Project Support, Office of Health and Wellness
- The Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities is the state agency that focuses on establishing and improving policies, programs, and services for people with mental illness, substance use disorders, and developmental disabilities.

The DDD Foundation, Inc. (DDD)
- Representative: Deidra Rondeno, DMD
- The DDD Foundation, Inc. provides accessible, comprehensive dental treatment to patients with developmental disabilities. We provide preventive, routine and emergency dental care as well as hospital dentistry for those patients who require it. We accept Medicaid, and as a courtesy will file claims with most traditional insurance plans.

Statewide Independent Living Council of GA, Inc. (SILC)
- Representative: Shelly Simmons, Executive Director
- Statewide Independent Living Council of GA, Inc is governed by people with all types of disabilities from across the state. The role of the SILC is to identify societal barriers to independent living and to collaborate with Centers for Independent Living, Rehabilitation Services and other related entities to remove those barriers and to increase the supports and services needed to create independent living opportunities.

Georgians for a Healthy Future (GHF)
- Representative: Whitney Griggs, MPH, Health Policy Analyst
- Georgians for a Healthy Future provides a voice for Georgia individuals and communities on health care issues and decisions that impact their lives. Their vision is to one day all Georgians have access to the quality, affordable health care they need to live healthy lives and contribute to the health of their communities.

Partners

Dr. Teal Benevides, Augusta University
- Dr. Teal Benevides, PhD, MS, OTR/L, Associate Professor, will carry out analyses of existing data (e.g., state disability & health data) and support the development of our statewide and regional needs assessments. She will also create infographics and other dissemination tools to share needs assessment findings with relevant stakeholders.

National Center for Primary Care, Morehouse School of Medicine
- Megan Douglas, JD, Assistant Professor, and her team at the National Center for Primary Care (NCPC) at Morehouse School of Medicine will support our healthcare provider training and policy change initiatives.

Georgians for Healthy Futures (GHF)
- Whitney Griggs, Health Policy Analyst and her team will support our policy change initiatives.

Crimminz & Associates
- Stacey Ramirez Founding Partner, will coordinate our work linking Georgians with IDD who have unmet healthcare needs to the services they need.

Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD)
- Staff of the DBHDD Division of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities will support our needs assessment, healthcare provider training, and policy change initiatives.
Northwest Georgia Center for Independent Living
- The Northwest GA CIL (NWG-CIL) will collaborate with our team to implement Living Well in the Community, which is a 10-week wellness curriculum designed by and for individuals with disabilities.
Parent to Parent of Georgia
- We are partnering with Parent to Parent of GA (P2PGA) to expand and enhance their robust provider resource directory.

National Association of County and City Health Officials Health and Disability Program (NACCHO)
- We are partnering with NACCHO’s Health and Disability Program to increase the number of local health department staff in Georgia who have completed the Health and Disability 101: Training for Health Department Employees program.

GA STATEWIDE DISABILITY & HEALTH PROGRAM P.A.W. NEWSLETTERS

May, 2023 Issue
November, 2022 Issue
August 2022 Issue
May, 2022 Issue
Feb, 2022 Issue

Needs Assessments

Assessment Report coming soon.

Provider Training

Nursing: North Country Health Consortium/NNH AHEC is approved as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the Northeast Multi state Division Education Unit, an accredited Approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation. This activity was approved for 1.0 Nursing Contact Hour. Activity # 521
Physician: This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of theAccreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME)through the joint providership of North Country Health Consortium/NNH AHEC and the NH Disability and Health Program Institute on Disability/ UCED, University of New Hampshire.The North Country Health Consortium/NNH AHEC is accredited by the NH Medical Society to provide continuing medical education for physicians. The North Country Health Consortium/NNH AHEC designates this live activity for a maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1.0 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Nursing: North Country Health Consortium/NNH AHEC is approved as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the Northeast Multistate Division Education Unit, an accredited Approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditati This activity was approved for .5 Nursing Contact Hour. Activity # 522
Physician: This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of North Country Health Consortium/NNH AHEC and the NH Disability and Health Program

Linkage Project

The Georgia Disability & Health Linkage Project focuses on linking adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities to preventive health care and health promotion programs in their community. This project aims to:

Support adults with disabilities to identify and address barriers to good health
Support adults with disabilities to receive preventive care and services that will help them meet their health and wellness goals.

Recruitment Flyer

Are you or someone you know interested in enrolling in our linkage project? Use this survey link to complete a short form and someone on our team will contact you to begin enrollment. https://gsu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0D0xkFGk0yMDqxU

Healthy Living

Living Well in the Community

The Disability and Health 10 state collaborative reviewed several health promotion programs before deciding all 10 states will implement Living Well in the Community.
Living Well in the Community is a 10-week health promotion workshop for persons with disabilities who want to set goals and learn new skills to support their overall quality of life and wellbeing. We are partnering with Northwest Georgia Center for Independent Living to begin implementation. Sessions will be held in a hybrid format. Recruitment for participants will begin soon!

Ellen Lopez

Linkage Coordinator

Michelle Quintero

Linkage Coordinator

Reports & Resources Toolbox

Health promotion and other informational materials developed by our team will be available here for download.

Contact Us

Address

Center for Leadership in Disability
Urban Life Building

140 Decatur Street SE
Suite 140
Atlanta, GA 30303

View Map

Reach Out

404-413-1289

404-413-1563

[email protected]

Director

Erin Vinoski Thomas, PhD

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Center for Leadership in Disability