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| What We Do |
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The JUDY Center for Down Syndrome is a consultative service to families, the community, and other pediatric healthcare professionals at The Joseph M. Sanzari Children’s Hospital at Hackensack University Medical Center. The initial consultation and admission process generally takes approximately four hours and involves two separate visits. Follow-up visits are usually shorter.
Information derived from these visits is provided to the family and the individual’s physicians. The JUDY Center follows the guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the National Down Syndrome Congress. With the consent of the individual or family, our healthcare professionals can meet with other agencies and health professionals to discuss the treatment and care of our mutual clients.
The JUDY Center has ongoing programs open to the community that involve healthcare professionals in Child Life Services, educational sessions for families managing Down syndrome, and outreach to medical professionals.
The core of the team is made up of a receptionist, licensed social worker, nurse educator, a developmental pediatrician and pediatrician, who also serves as medical director of the JUDY Center.
Some of the services we provide are:
- Medical services to manage specific problems associated with Down syndrome
- Individual and family counseling aimed at enhancing coping and adaptation
- Outpatient parent support groups
- Referrals to community resources to ensure continuity of care throughout the lifespan
- Educational services that help families have smooth transitions along the educational pathway
- Recreation, wellness and sports services that encompass a spectrum of activities ranging from recreational activities to wellness exercise programs
- Special services that include speech-language therapy, physical therapy, occupational therapy, audiological enhancements, and others
- Long-term planning services that provide an advocacy support system to assist families with projected long-term needs
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