Family Voices Indiana

We will be introducing the health information specialists for the family to family health information center at Family Voices Indiana over the next few months. Their biographies will also be included on our website at www.fvindiana.org . Every contractor at our center is a mother of a child(ren) with special healthcare needs and/or disabilities. We have personal experience navigating the systems and services in Indiana. We look forward to learning more about your families as well. Jan Labas is our HIS in the Ft. Wayne/Allen County area, and lives in Fort Wayne with her husband and children. She is passionate about her work with families of special needs children serving Allen and surrounding counties. Having run into walls and road blocks raising her own special needs children she is personally motivated. There is nothing like the love of a parent to fuel the tireless effort needed to find answers for their child. Often it just takes being pointed in the right direction. Ja

Center for Youth and Adults with Conditions of Childhood , CYACC, provides interdisciplinary consultation in a health-care setting to specifically address transition and adult life issues regardless of the youth or adult's diagnosis. CYACC is recruiting patients for sessions of their pilot research program called "Be Your Own Boss" (BYOB). It is a youth and young adult self-management support program developed in collaboration between the Stanford Chronic Disease Self-Management Program (CDSMP) and Alberta Health. The series consists of a six 2.5 hour weekly workshops Workshops are currently enrolling: Lafayette at the Morton Community Center: Mondays from 6-8:30pm, October 17 – November 21 Indianapolis at the Acessability Center for Independent Living: Thursdays from 6-8:30pm, October 27 – December 8 Patient criteria: -Have a chronic disease/condition -Are between the ages of 13-24 years -Are fluent in English -Can participate in a group set

Family Voices Indiana wants to ensure its members are aware of agencies and programs that affect individuals with special health care needs and/or disabilities. DDRS has posted the following bulletin regarding The Bureau of Quality Improvement Services (BQIS). From DDRS: BQIS Web Page Updates ( http://www.in.gov/fssa/ddrs/2635.htm ) BQIS has added the following two new sections to its web page: Mortality Data and Recommendations This section includes data and recommendations from the Mortality Review Committee (MRC). The MRC reviews deaths of all individuals who received DDRS-funded services and provides recommendations to mitigate future deaths from occurring due to the same/similar circumstances. While the mortality data presented on the BQIS webpage may pertain to comorbid conditions that are not attributable to the cause of death, the risks involved with these conditions warrant providers’ further examination. The expectation is for providers to increase its staff’s awareness of

FV Indiana was pleased to participate in Indiana's Health Insurance Exchange Symposium on October 11th. This event brought together policy makers, administrators and advocates to consider how Health Care Exchanges , a key provision of the Affordable Care Act, can serve Hoosiers. Indiana is one of four states that has moved forward on Health Care Exchanges via an executive order . We join Hawaii as one of two states considering operating an exchange as a non-profit organization. The October 11th event was hosted by Indiana's Healthcare Implementation Work Group. Many members have asked how Health Care Exchanges will impact children with special health care needs and their families. The Symposium highlighted several issues of interest to our members. The funding for states to implement exchanges includes significant support for modernization of data and enrollment systems. Related requirements would ensure seamless enrollment across Medicaid, CHIP and the exchanges, a critical is