Are you looking for information and support? Here are some places to look:
Other Families: Do you know other families who have children
with disabilities or special health needs? Talk to them. They
may save you a lot of time looking for agencies that can help
you.
Phone Book: Try to find the government programs and resource
agencies that serve your community. These are usually at the
beginning or end of your phone booka nd often on colored pages.
There may be toll-free phone numbers for some programs.
Library: Ask the librarian in the reference section to help
you find out if specific disease or disability organizations
have state or local chapters near you. Look for magazines like
Exceptional Parent which offer a wealth of information
for parents of children with special health care needs.
Libraries often provide computers for accessing the internet to
search for information and resources.
Hospitals, Clinics and Health Providers: Ask about parent
support groups and family resource centers. Check out the
bulletin boards in clinic or hospital waiting rooms.
Internet: It's getting easier to find a friend or a friendly
agency or library that will allow you access to a computer with
a modem for conducting on-line searches on the World Wide Web.
Check out www.familyvillage.wisc.edu or www.nichcy.org
Other resrouces: Try your local United Way charitable giving
agency. They know a lot about local resources for families.
