Health and Disability

We know from research that adults with intellectual or other developmental disabilities, such as autism or Down syndrome, frequently face a cascade of health disparities. They may:

• have complex, multiple or difficult-to-treat medical conditions
• experience difficulty accessing health care, either because of physical barriers or financial barriers
• receive inadequate health care
• have difficulties expressing their symptoms and pain
• receive little attention to wellness, preventive care and health promotion

And these adults deserve quality, patient-centered health care.

The Special Hope Foundation, of Palo Alto, Calif., saw this need and provided funding for the IDD Toolkit, a website devoted to medical information for the health care of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). The toolkit came online earlier this year, and is accessible on a PC, tablet or smartphone. As of early August, the site has had more than 11,000 visits with more than 33,500 page views.