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Winter 2012

Winter 2012 Volume X, Issue II

Winter2012Newsletter(pdf)

Table of Contents:

Spotlight on Success: Retired Bureau Chief, Janet Gully
Family Outcomes Survey On Its Way to EI Families
Notes From Our Ombudsman
Important Reminders
Recipes for Success
Changes in EI Activity Credit Request Process
Pointers for Parents:
EI Resources

Spotlight on Success: Retired Bureau Chief, Janet Gully

There is often a taste of bittersweet that accompanies any transition and the retirement of Illinois' Dept. of Human Services Early Intervention Bureau Chief, Janet Gully, is no exception. On January 1, 2012, Janet officially begins a new chapter in her life story; one that most of us anxiously await in ours…

It was in February of 2000 when Janet Gully accepted the office of IL Early Intervention Bureau Chief and the many challenges that came with it. At that time, IL Early Intervention was still rebounding from a significant lawsuit against it. Under court monitor allowing more and more children into early intervention, a System focused on the number of hours of services provided instead of the needs of children and families ensued. Janet sought to move this system back to the family centered focus using transdisciplinary teams, with families as active participants, to determine the needs of the child. Implementing steps of accountability to ensure the highest quality of services available to children and families became high priority.

It is now 2012 and the Illinois Early Intervention System has, over the past 12 years, implemented measures promoting enhanced quality services and supports for all in Illinois Early Intervention. The State of Illinois is not perfect, but it has come a long way. Janet Gully is proud that during her tenure as Bureau Chief, Illinois Early Intervention now uses performance contracts and collected data as a guide in its decision making processes. An evaluator credential has been added, raising the bar of quality and credibility in the EI assessment process. Background checks, now required before credentials are issued, are a step closer to ensure the safety of children. A process to help monitor the professional competency of interpreters and translators working within this System is also in place. Another big boost to Illinois Early Intervention has been the processing of enhanced Medicaid claims resulting in an additional $34 million in federal funds.

A true believer in the strength of a familycentered focus for best results in early intervention, Janet hopes for Illinois to fully embrace principles and practices centered on the needs of children and families in early intervention with more integrated teams working and collaborating together in the best interests of children and families.

When asked what one piece of advice she would have for parents entering IL Early Intervention, Janet's response is to work closely with service providers and ask questions. Families need to be educated in all aspects of early intervention, including the transition process, and to know what community resources are available to them. She urges all parents/families to ask questions and then continue to ask questions.

What does the future look like for Janet Gully? She has no immediate plans other than to enjoy the time off; slow down, just a bit, and take the time to reconnect with family and friends. Janet has always enjoyed travel and hopes to be able to experience new sites as well as return to some of her favorites. As she kicks back and enjoys life from a different perspective, Janet will remain open to opportunities in fields of human services, including early intervention. Making a difference is what life is all about.

Congratulations on your retirement, Janet Gully! As you follow new directions in your life, know that through your service in early intervention and to the State of Illinois, you have touched lives, changed hearts, impacted families and made a difference to many. Though your presence will be missed, the footprints of your leadership in IL Early Intervention will continue to march on.

Thank you and Best Wishes in all that you do.

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Family Outcomes Survey On Its Way to EI Families

Early intervention is a family-centered system of supports and services. Both children and families are considered to receive benefits from these supports and services. The family outcomes survey is one way we can learn whether or not families are getting what is intended from early intervention services. Family outcomes are defined as the changes experienced by the family as a result of early intervention services and supports. The Family Outcomes Survey-Revised is used to measure these changes and was developed using information received from providers and families in Illinois. This survey asks families to think about things like understanding your child's strengths, abilities, and special needs and helping your child develop and learn. Family outcomes surveys have been sent to a portion of the families in the early intervention system each year. Last year, nearly 2,400 of the 13,000 surveyed early intervention families returned the surveys that were sent directly to their homes.

After reviewing the results, a few things are clear. Despite small variations by region and ethnicity, most families reported that they received substantial benefits from early intervention services. Higher rated items indicate greater achievement of outcomes. Some of the highest rated areas include families reporting that they are able to understand their child's strengths, needs and abilities, that they know their rights, and that they are able to advocate for their child. Lower rated items indicate that some families still struggle with identifying and accessing support systems and identifying available options when their child leaves the EI program. Overall, though, EI was ranked as being more helpful this year than it was last year.

Although the returned surveys did not fully reflect the diversity of families in the early intervention system, the information has been useful. Future efforts will focus on acquiring information that captures the diversity found in the early intervention system. To that end, this year's Family Outcomes Survey will be sent out to every family that is enrolled in Early Intervention on a certain date. To help improve return rates, providers should let families know that the surveys are being mailed out to their homes and encourage families to complete and return the surveys. By continuing to expand the number of families receiving the survey and by improving return rates, we should soon be able to describe the benefits of early intervention for both children and their families.

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Notes From Our Ombudsman

The annual Family Outcomes Survey is once again being prepared for delivery to early intervention families. This survey provides an excellent opportunity for families to give feedback about their early intervention experiences to system stakeholders. This year an even greater number of families will have an opportunity to respond as the Family Outcomes Survey will go out to every family that was enrolled in our system at the beginning of December. While a number of families respond each year, we have yet to get feedback from a group that is fully representative of the early intervention population we serve. If you're wondering what you can do the change this, please consider the following suggestions:

First, please ask the families that you work with about the survey and tell them why they received it.
Second, encourage them to return their survey in the envelope provided or to enter their responses online as directed on the survey.
Third, if they need assistance completing the survey, let them know that they can call the Early Intervention Training Program for assistance. They can use the toll-free number: 866.509.3867/ ext 266.
Lastly, if they are concerned about the feedback they are going to provide, you can assure them that information is only shared in aggregate and that responding to the survey will not negatively impact the services they receive.

Thank you for your support. Getting more families to respond is a great first step towards understanding how early intervention helps families and how we can improve the system to make it work even better!

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Important Reminders

To all providers considering using video credit toward their credential:

The EI Training Program will only accept video credit requests of videos currently posted on the EI Clearinghouse's list of those approved for early intervention credit. The most current list, and the one the EI Training Program refers to, is available at www.eiclearinghouse.org.

The Clearinghouse continues to review videos/dvds, existing in the library as well as new ones coming in, for appropriateness to Illinois Early Intervention. Please note that on January 1, 2012, 25 titles have been purged from the list of those approved for early intervention credit. Videos are removed from the list when: 1) the information presented on the video has become outdated; and/or 2) the information presented is specific to older children and does not directly address the 0-3 population.

When considering video credit for your early intervention credential, please choose directly from the EI Clearinghouse's website. Do not rely on pre-printed copies of this list as being current.

Also, current credential policy is that a maximum of 5 hours of early intervention video credit may be used for each 30 hours of continuing education credit submitted for renewal OR 5 hours in each core knowledge area of the 120 hours required for credential documentation purposes.

In case of inclement weather: It is the policy of the EI Training Program to hold all scheduled workshops and training events whenever possible, regardless of weather conditions. However, safety is of the utmost concern and participants are urged to use their own judgment in determining if weather conditions make the commute too hazardous even though the event is still being held. The Training Program is deliberate in scheduling training sites that are likely to remain open in most weather conditions. However, in the various regions of Illinois, weather can change quickly and in the event a training is cancelled due to weather every effort will be made to announce the cancellation of daytime events by 5:00 a.m. and evening events by 2:00 p.m. on the day of the event. Cancellation announcements will be posted on the home page of our website, www.illinoiseitraining.org , as well as on the Training Program's Facebook Page. A message will also be recorded at our toll free number 866-509-3867. We encourage all to check our website before venturing out to any of our training events.

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Recipes for Success

"Do something fun everyday! Therapy should be enjoyable for all involved. Get your goofy on!"

-Meg Liebreich, PT

"A mother of a child with special needs once said to me…'I don't know if my daughter will reach the stars I dreamt for her, but I guarantee you she will reach her own stars."

-Valerie Miller, PT

"Help families celebrate the small steps toward the larger goal."

-Ellisa Slonim, SLP

"Focus on the strength… of the child and the family."

-Joanne Perpoli, Psych

"Make your sessions about the child and family, not about you and the child."

-Dena Blackman, DT

"It's very important to remember that early intervention services are intended to provide support to families, not overwhelm them with a steady stream of providers and appointments. Many families are stressed out and more services may not always be better."

-Patti Tallacksen, SC

"Validate the parents' perception of what they are seeing and dealing with and then help them to see the positives."

-Meleah Getch, DT

"Without a rapport and relationship with the parent, you will never be able to reach the child."

-Jennifer Frankfurter, DT

"You must develop a keen sense of humor."

- Elaine Leslie, SEC

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Changes in EI Activity Credit Request Process

Effective March 1, 2012, the Illinois Early Intervention Training Program will ONLY accept and review EI Activity Credit Requests received from sponsoring organization submitted through our online process.

Sponsoring Organizations are those qualified entities that host training workshops and/or conferences for learning purposes. They can be non-for-profit entities or for profit businesses. The EI Training Program encourages organizations to submit their workshops, conference sessions, and online learning activities that directly address children birth to 36 months with special needs for review. The online submission process is free of charge and requires approximately 20 minutes to complete. The information required for review is as follows:

Title of Workshop/Event;

Date and Time of workshop (must submit for each date held);

Trainer's name and brief bio;

Description of workshop;

Timed agenda; and

Relevance to Illinois Principles of Early Intervention

For more information, see the EI Training Program's website. Select the "Credit Request" option from the menu bar, then the 'Credit Request' link. You can also email at: creditrequest@illinoiseitraining.org or call 866.509.3867.

The 6th Annual Empowering Professionals Conference: "Tools of the Trade"

Friday, March 2, 2012 ~ 8:30 am - 4:15 pm at

Prairie State College - Business and Community Education Center

202 South Halsted Street (Parking Lot D)

Chicago Heights, IL 60411

Featuring Keynote, "Disability is Natural and Other Revolutionary Common Sense", by Kathy Snow, wife, parent, author, public speaker, consultant, and host of the "Disability Is Natural" website. Registration is available at www.illinoiseitraining.org

Early Bird Registration is $55. Regular $65 after February 10, 2010

For Student Rates OR Group Registration

please contact the EI Training Program at: 866.509.3867/ext 253

Breakout Sessions #1

A) Personal Safety in Home Visiting

- Melissa Velez, MS, VI TA & Laurie Lincoln

B) Early Intervention: Where Are We Headed?

- Kristi Pretti-Frontczak, PhD

C) Tools & Strategies for Assessing/Intervening with Young Babies & Their Families

- Ann Jackson, PT, MS & Donna Hurley, PT

D) Supporting Hopes and Dreams for Children and

Families

- Kathie Snow

Breakout Sessions #2

A) Personal Safety in Home Visiting

- Melissa Velez, MS, VI TA & Laurie Lincoln

B) Using The Family's Stuff

- Amy Cocorikis

C) Tools & Strategies for Assessing/Intervening with Young Babies & Their Families

- Ann Jackson, PT, DPT, MS & Donna Hurley, PT

D) Forging the Relationship Between Therapist and

Interpreter

- Mary Jo Tobalin

Be sure to log on to www.illinoiseitraining.org regularly. Here you will find current news and information related to Illinois Early Intervention, an updated training calendar of events featuring continuing education and professional development opportunities sponsored by the Illinois Early Intervention Training Program and other organizations/stakeholders with vested interest in early intervention. The EI Training Program website also offers a page of links to extensive resources related to many aspects of early intervention suitable for professionals, families, and anyone interested.

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Pointers for Parents:

The Family's Role in EI Services: How You Can Help Your Child

Operated by the Early Childhood and Parenting (ECAP) Collaborative at the University of Illinois and funded by the Illinois Department of Human Services, the Illinois Early Intervention (EI) Clearinghouse identifies and collects research-based and best-practice early intervention information to share with families. The EI Clearinghouse offers families access to an extensive collection of supports/resources including books, videos/DVDs, and journals on a variety of topics related to child development and parenting a child with special needs. The information below comes from a series of EI Notes, published by the EI Clearinghouse, for parents and caregivers of children receiving Illinois Early Intervention Services. EI Notes provide useful information to help parents and families maximize the care and services received through Illinois Early Intervention. For more information on the Family's Role in EI Services and other issues related to early intervention, visit the EI Clearinghouse's website at http://eiclearinghouse.org.

The Family's Role in EI Services: How You Can Help Your Child

Did you know that you are the most important person in your child's life? Research has shown that young children who have a strong attachment with an important adult (that's you!) are most likely to grow up secure and happy. You know your child better than anyone else, so your input and participation in your child's early intervention (EI) service plan is critical. In fact, you can greatly influence and support your child's learning and development by working closely with your child's EI providers.

Here are some ways you can help:

Notice what your child is interested in. What are her favorite toys, games, and songs? Who are his favorite people to play with? Share your child's likes and dislikes with your EI providers.
Tell your EI provider about any concerns you have about your child. For example, do you worry that he isn't crawling or that he is having trouble eating or sleeping? Let your provider know.
Take an active role in developing a plan for your child's EI services with your child's team. Tell the team members what you and your family think is most important for your child. Agree on outcomes that are meaningful for your child and family.
Actively take part in your child's home visits and appointments. Active involvement will help you learn strategies and skills that will enhance your child's development.
Ask your EI providers to explain the activities they are doing with you and your child. Ask for the reasons behind the Activities. Knowing these things will help you work with your child in between visits.
Provide lots of opportunities for your child to play and practice new skills during everyday routines-dressing, meal times, and diaper changes.
Ask questions if you are unsure about your rights within the EI system. Check the Early Intervention Clearinghouse Web site for more information at http://eiclearinghouse.org/getting-started.html.
Provide an environment where it is safe for your child to explore and learn about the world.
Learn about activities in your community that your child and family might enjoy doing.
Identify your family's formal and informal supports and resources. Who can you count on for help? What do you have that you can use to help your child?
Ask for help when needed. Let friends, family, and providers know how they can help during challenging times.
Let your child know that he or she is special and loved!